Designing an Intentional Notification Architecture for Digital Well-Being

This implementation defines three attention modes – deep work, available, and open – each with distinct notification routing rules that batch non-urgent alerts, suppress social notifications during focus periods, and surface only safety-critical interruptions universally. The system uses a local-first architecture where filtering logic runs on-device without phoning home, respecting the principle that attention management data is among the most intimate data a person generates. Initial user testing with a 50-person cohort showed a 34% reduction in phone pickups and self-reported improvements in task completion satisfaction.