Lately, a new app designed for people with ADHD, recently launched on the App Store, aiming to help users arrive on time by rewarding punctuality.
The app assists with travel planning by sending timely departure reminders — 30 minutes, 10 minutes, and 5 minutes before it’s time to leave. It also takes advantage of Live Activities on iPhone and Apple Watch, offering a countdown feature to keep users on track.
To motivate users, Lately features a points-based reward system with four difficulty levels. The easiest, called “Goldfish,” awards 3 points for being early, 2 for being on time, and none for being late. Higher difficulty settings — “Coffee,” “Grown Up,” and “Yoda” — introduce stricter rules, with “Yoda” even subtracting 2 points if you’re late.
As users earn points, they level up and unlock collectible virtual characters, serving as fun achievement badges. Though the rewards are simple, they offer a tangible sense of progress, which can be motivating. Indie developer Erik MacInnis built Lately specifically to tackle time management challenges faced by people with ADHD.
“I’ve always been the ‘late one’ among my friends,” MacInnis shared with TechCrunch. “For many of us, the hardest parts are time blindness and misjudging how long things take. Lately keeps you constantly aware of when it’s time to leave — and it’s gamified, so being on time feels genuinely rewarding.”
While there are other apps like Time to Leave on Android, MacInnis says they feel outdated. Popular ADHD apps like Structured and TickTick focus more on task organization rather than solving time blindness around commuting.
In our hands-on testing, we found Lately helpful, though it currently only supports travel estimates for driving or walking — a limitation for those using public transit or biking in big cities.
Even with this gap, Lately has strong potential. Experts often recommend reward systems to help people with ADHD stay motivated — a strategy that apps like Finch have used successfully by offering points for completing self-care tasks.
Looking ahead, MacInnis plans to introduce a social feature that will notify friends when a user leaves, is five minutes away, and when they arrive. An Android version is also in development for the future.
Lately is free to download, with a premium version available for $3 per month or $10 per year, unlocking additional features like customizable difficulty levels and the ability to schedule recurring trips.
