"Medication safety is a universal issue", says Soobin, talking about the importance of their newly developed application, DrugWise.
DrugWise was ideated in response to the Science Partnership Office’s annual Aegis Innovation Competition, which challenges students to design and present innovative solutions to real-world challenges.
Inspired by team-member Clarissa’s late Grandparents and their experience of care, the student-made app assists users in understanding drug-drug and drug-food interactions, as well as identifying counterfeit products. "I hope that by creating this app, others in similar situations can have better support," Clarissa shares.
Well, Team 10 and DrugWise certainly impressed our judges… and were declared our 2025 APUC champions!
Following their win, we caught up with the team to find out more about their time taking part in the competition.
What We Learned from APUC: Turning Challenges into Momentum
The project brought together a multidisciplinary team of students, each juggling internships, society roles, and studies - often across different time zones. Unsurprisingly, time management quickly became one of the biggest hurdles. Weekly meetings required careful coordination and staying aligned as a team demanded clear communication and strong organisation.
With this challenge came the chance for individuals to stretch their existing skills. “I developed confidence in handling project management tasks”, shared Yeonseo.
For some, it was also their first time building an app from scratch or working with large datasets. Xy, who had an existing background in Computer Science, noted the interesting pay-off between innovation and technical feasibility. “I learned a lot about collaboration, compromise, and how to translate between technical limits and creative ideas”.
Ultimately, the team’s development went far beyond building new technical skills. As David puts it, “This project has given me the mindset of being creative and innovative, also to believe in what you believe, especially when the outcome will make the world a better place.”
Breaking into Business: The Impact of a Mentor
Competing teams had access to a mentor over the summer period, with the aim of supporting the development of their idea. Team 10 successfully utilised meetings with their mentor, Dr Anne Westcott, to shape the final form of DrugWise.
“We had a lot of fun discussing [our] different ideas […] and consolidating them into one!”, said Clarissa. “And as we proceed on our project, the constructive feedback helped us to improve our app,” added Soobin.
Dedicated mentorship was particularly impactful when it came to exploring the business side of innovation.
Discussing the commercial scope of DrugWise, Xy explained how, using their mentor, the team identified a USP for their project. “[Anne] prompted us to think about why our app is different from others, what makes it special, and even some of the business aspects we hadn’t considered. It wasn’t just about building features, but also about how we present them and who we’re building for. That really helped us shape DrugWise into something more unique.”
On Winning £5000 and the Future of DrugWise
After months of hard work, it was finally time for the team to attend our celebration day. Throughout the afternoon, participating teams displayed posters, gave presentations, and chatted with industry professionals about their projects.
The judges – comprised of academics, industry professionals, and Aegis Professors – were thoroughly impressed by Team 10’s professionalism, creativity, and the availability of DrugWise as an online prototype!
I asked the team how it felt to be declared the winners …
“It was incredible,” said Soobin, “It [felt] like the reward of our 3 months of hard work.”
“More than the winning itself, it felt rewarding to see that others also believed in the value of our idea. It gave me confidence that what we created could actually make a real difference.” added Yeonseo.
And what about the future of DrugWise?
“We’d love to develop it into a well-rounded app — especially with the latest feature, the counterfeit checker,” said Clarissa.
The team are also excited to continue working on the app’s pill identification feature, as explained by Xy. “It’s personally the most exciting part to me — using the camera to recognise pills and match them correctly,”
Overall, the team want to take DrugWise to those who really need it. Speaking on behalf of the team, Yeonseo captured this wish perfectly –
“I hope DrugWise can grow into an app that truly empowers people to make safer decisions about medicine. Beyond the counterfeit checker, I’d like to see features that improve accessibility, such as multilingual support or integration with healthcare providers. Ultimately, I’d love for it to be a trusted platform that benefits both individuals and communities.”