Bath students launch women's safety app
It's taken three years to develop
Last updated 2nd Jun 2023
A new "revolutionary" smartwatch app, developed by two graduates from the University of Bath, wants to protect women out walking alone, without the wearer having to do anything.
Epowar monitors things like the users heart rate and body motion, to sense if the user is distressed.
If the AI behind the software senses distress, it will sends an alert to their contacts - without having the be manually activated.
Aimed primarily at women's safety, the developers believe their automatic alert system solves the problem of the user having to turn on devices - such as rape alarms and personal safety products.
"Many women feel scared to walk or run alone".
Inspiration for the technology came about when co-found E J Roodt, who says she felt scared to jog alone in a badly lit park.
The Bath graduate admits that technology alone can’t solve the problem of violence against women on its own, she hopes “tech like Epowar can play its part, giving women back some power and control.”
Roodt, along with fellow creator Maks Rahman began working on Epowar whilst still at University, supported by the University's Enterprise and Entrepreneurship programme, which included funding and a business mentor.
The AI-powered system was built on extensive research into detectable responses to physical distress and an analysis of thousands of samples of physiological and motion data.
It can distinguish incidents of distress from regular activities and exercises, such as walking.
Rahman says “I’m used to walking my female friends home whenever it's late or they feel unsafe. I have two younger sisters, I wondered what it would be like for them and if someone would do the same. I hope they use Epowar to be safe and also independent"
The app was launched on the App store today, and will be rolled out to other devices, including Android, Fitbit and Garmin later this year.