Just Smile

AI-powered preventative oral health support

“I know I should go to the dentist... but I just can’t afford it.”

Common sentiment among our target users

JustSmile is an AI-powered mobile app that helps people identify potential oral health concerns earlier through photo-based assessments, personalized guidance, and habit-building. I led the product strategy, UX research, and end-to-end product design to make preventive dental care feel more accessible and actionable.

Project status: Startup
Problem

Dental care is reactive: cost, anxiety, and access barriers delay action until problems escalate.

Strategy

Focused on prevention, habit formation, and AI guidance, not diagnosis.

Solution

Designed one mobile experience that combines AI screening, habit formation, and preventive guidance.

Impact
  • $1,000 Gebhardt Sandbox Fund secured
  • Validated trust + habit hypotheses
Role
Product Designer + Product Manager
Timeline
8 months · October 2026–present
Team
4 · Design · Engineering · Business
Tools
Cursor · Claude · Vercel

Helping people act before dental problems become emergencies.

Scan potential concerns, understand next steps, and build healthier habits before problems escalate.

JustSmile home screen on iPhone showing latest snapshot, daily habits, and Smile Calendar
Daily Guidance
JustSmile Smile Snapshot screen on iPhone showing tap-to-scan interface and photo tips
AI Scan
JustSmile Find Care screen on iPhone showing care navigation, nearby options, and Smile Coach
Find Care

Problem

Dental care is reactive, expensive, and delayed.

Pain, cost, uncertainty, and limited access often push people to seek care only after problems escalate.

72M

Americans lack dental insurance

$1.6B

spent annually on preventable emergency dental visits

9.6M

Americans have traveled abroad for dental care

Why this happens

  1. Limited access
  2. Delayed care
  3. Emergency treatment

Design challenge

How might we help people take preventative action earlier without increasing friction or anxiety?

Design constraints

Balancing prevention, trust, and healthcare regulations required navigating five constraints.

  • Trust

    Guidance must feel credible without appearing diagnostic.

  • Regulation

    Stay within wellness guidance rather than regulated medical advice.

  • Behavior

    Prevention only works when daily habits feel achievable.

  • Image quality

    Reliable guidance depends on consistent at-home photos.

  • Accessibility

    Design for varying literacy levels and dental knowledge.

Research

What prevents people from acting earlier?

To understand where preventative support breaks down, we evaluated existing products, interviewed potential users, and identified where current experiences fall short.

Competitive landscape

AI Dental Tools

Most products focused on treatment rather than prevention.

Key takeaway

Products assumed users already had access to care.

Behavior Design

Habit products succeeded through small repeatable rewards.

Key takeaway

Low-friction habit loops encouraged long-term engagement.

What users told us

  • I'd trust it more if there was data behind it.
    Participant 2
  • I'm not sure I could take a good picture of my teeth.
    Participant 4
  • I usually wait until it hurts.
    Participant 7

Key findings

  1. Cost and uncertainty delayed care.

    Users postponed treatment until symptoms became painful.

  2. Trust shaped willingness to use AI.

    People wanted evidence before relying on recommendations.

  3. Habit-building felt easier than treatment.

    Small daily actions felt more achievable than clinical interventions.

  4. Users wanted actionable next steps.

    People looked for clear guidance on what to do after each scan.

Opportunity space

These insights revealed four opportunities for intervention.

  • Affordable prevention

    Help users act before problems become expensive.

  • Behavior reinforcement

    Encourage small repeatable habits rather than one-time actions.

  • Low-stakes AI guidance

    Provide education and recommendations instead of diagnosis.

  • Support beyond clinics

    Extend preventative care into everyday life.

Key Decisions

  1. Habit formation requires positive reinforcement

    Tooth characters celebrate progress and make preventative care feel more approachable than traditional dental experiences.

    JustSmile tooth character system showing Scan, Habits, Coach, and Monitor roles

  2. Colors can build trust before the first interaction

    Dental branding research highlighted blue as a signal of trust and professionalism, while green reinforced health and prevention. We used both as foundational colors, then reserved orange and purple for monitoring and guidance.

    JustSmile color system diagram showing blue, green, violet, and orange with their roles in the product

  3. Reducing friction starts before the first scan

    Research showed that lower commitment experiences encouraged engagement, so onboarding focused on goals and habits before introducing AI features.

  4. People need to know what to do next

    Users opened JustSmile looking for reassurance or direction, so the homepage prioritized their latest Smile Snapshot, followed by habits, progress, and coaching resources.

    JustSmile homepage showing latest Smile Snapshot, daily habits, Smile Calendar progress, and Smile Coach entry point

Solution

JustSmile helped users detect issues early, understand results, and build healthier habits.

Capture and compare smile snapshots over time so users can notice potential concerns before symptoms become emergencies.

Impact

Early testing transformed uncertainty into confidence.

Early prototypes were tested with dental experts and potential users to evaluate trust, scanning, and habit engagement.

$1,000

Gebhardt Sandbox Fund

Awarded to continue validating preventative AI oral health support.

  1. Finding 01

    “Users questioned scan accuracy.”

    Redesigned scan results to build trust.

    Added clearer scan limitations and reframed recommendations as guidance rather than diagnosis.

  2. Finding 02

    “Photo quality made scanning difficult.”

    Introduced image capture guidance.

    Added step-by-step photo tips before scanning to improve confidence and consistency.

  3. Finding 03

    “The brushing coach resonated strongly.”

    Moved habit-building earlier in the experience.

    Strengthened routine-based onboarding to encourage small daily actions.

Future direction

  • Improve scan accuracy

    Explore public dental datasets to improve AI-assisted screening reliability.

  • Increase transparency

    Explain why recommendations are generated so users can build trust.

  • Pilot with partners

    Validate JustSmile with community clinics and dental organizations before scaling.

JustSmile became my first 0→1 product experience, from pitching and securing funding to leading product strategy, design, AI exploration, and business decisions. Working with clinicians, mentors, developers, and community members taught me how to build trustworthy AI experiences across disciplines.

JustSmile is ongoing. I’m continuing to explore AI reliability, partnerships, and real-world validation. Get in touch →