01Shield
OS-level app blocking
iOS Family Controls and an Android usage guard. The apps you pick are unreachable for the whole mission, not merely discouraged.
InstagramTikTokYouTubeXRedditSnapchat
Auster — attention defense system. Blocks the apps that own you at the OS level, for the whole session.
Mission briefing
An attention-defense system for people who have lost an argument with their own phone.
You declare a mission. Auster locks the apps that own you, holds the line for the duration, and if you break first, an AI coach tells you exactly what it thinks of that.
01
Enforced removal
Not a reminder. A lock.
OS-level parental controls block the apps you chose for the whole session. The app does not open. A moment-to-moment willpower problem becomes one up-front decision.
iOSFamily Controls + ManagedSettings shield — the operating system refuses to launch the app.
AndroidUsage-stats guard + full-screen block wall, within about a second of the reach.
Targets neutralizedLive
InstagramTikTokYouTubeXRedditSnapchat
— No push notifications from blocked apps
— No access while the mission is active
— Abort = failure, logged permanently
02
The Interceptor
Quitting early is not a button.
It is a ten-second, unskippable countdown that shows you your own stated goal while you wait. Impulse decays. Ten seconds is longer than the urge that produced it.
10 sNothing to tap. The failure button unlocks only when the counter hits zero.
NoteYour past self can leave a note. It is shown here, at exactly the right moment.
Abort mission?Live
10Breathe
Your objectiveFinish the thesis chapter before 18:00.
Wait 10s before deciding
03
The Roast
Break the session and it tells you exactly what it thinks.
Two sentences of cold, personalised contempt, referencing the goal and the weakness you declared. Loss aversion: a social cost, even a synthetic one, outweighs an abstract benefit.
VoiceCyberpunk drill sergeant. Not supportive, by specification.
AlwaysA verdict arrives on every path, even when the model is down. Never an error dialog.
⚡Auster verdict
Goal · Finish the thesis chapterWeakness · Instagram
Roasts are English-only in every language, by design. The voice is the product; a mistranslated insult is a bad insult.
04
The Attention Wall
Every day you held. Every day you broke.
A contribution graph of your attention. Streaks are visible; so are the gaps. A fuzzy self-image becomes a legible record that is uncomfortable to break.
ScoreFocus Quality = completion rate × 0.6 + capped average length × 0.4.
HoursVulnerability Hours: the five hours of the day your willpower breaks most.
Attention metrics13 weeks
Streak0
Quality0
Failed0
17 consecutive days. Impressive.
Two protocols
Choose your protocol. Switch any time.
Two visual modes carry two psychological registers, selected per session. The shield above follows along.
◎
ZEN
- Mindful intensity.
- Breathing-guided.
- Calm accountability.
4 s breath#00E5FFDry roast
⚔
HARDCORE
- Maximum intensity.
- Strict accountability.
- Failure is logged.
0.6 s pulse#FF003CBrutal roast
Live UI · not screenshots
Built like an instrument.
Monospace everywhere. Uppercase, wide tracking, glow instead of shadow. Every screen is a HUD for one decision.
09:41◔ ▲ ▮
Focus station◎ ZEN
24:59Remaining
MissionShip the landing page.
IGTKYTTX
Abort (and face shame)
21:14◔ ▲ ▮
BLOCKED
Instagram is off limits right now
00:42:17
You've reached for Instagram 6 times this session.
You chose this. Sit with it.
Return to Auster
09:41◔ ▲ ▮
Attention metricsINTEL
Streak17d
Focus41h
Quality82
Attention wall
Last 7 days
8 mechanisms · one system
Everything is engineered to make quitting expensive.
02Interceptor
Ten unskippable seconds
Quitting shows you your own goal and makes you wait. Most urges do not survive the wait.
Breathe → decide
03Verdict
An AI that is not on your side
Two sentences, personalised to your goal and weakness. Delivered as a notification and archived on your Wall of Shame.
You let a glowing rectangle win. Again.
04Wall
The Attention Wall
A contribution graph of every day you held or broke. Four weeks free, thirteen on Elite.
05Protocols
Zen or Hardcore
A 4-second breath or a 0.6-second pulse, each with its own ambient track that plays through the silent switch.
ZEN
HARDCORE
06Durability
Survives a force-quit
The session is persisted before any native call and the timer is a deadline, not a counter. Kill the app, reboot the phone: the mission is still running.
✓session persisted → shield deployed
✓app killed → deadline held
✓relaunch → resumed at 18:42 remaining
07Privacy
We never learn which apps you use
Your blocked-app selection lives on the device only. The only blocking datum that reaches the server is a count of interruptions: not which app, not when. Row-level security on every table; delete your account from Settings at any time.
0apps visible
to our servers
to our servers
08Locales
Seven languages
Every string translated at full parity. Device locale auto-detected; override any time. The roast stays in English on purpose.
ENTRDEESJAZHKO
Civilian vs Elite
Serious people use serious tools.
Blocking, the Interceptor and the roast are free for everyone. Elite removes the daily limit and extends your memory.
CivilianFree
- 3 focus sessions per day
- Full app blocking, both protocols
- AI verdicts and the Interceptor
- 4-week Attention Wall
- 14-day analytics window
Anonymous sign-in available · no email required
⚡ ELITEMonthly · Annual
- Unlimited sessions
- 13-week Attention Wall
- 90-day analytics window
- Vulnerability Hours — when your willpower breaks
- Everything in Civilian
Pricing shown in the app · cancel any time · free trial when available
Field manual
Questions operatives ask.
Does it really block apps, or just nag me?+
On iOS the block is enforced by the operating system through Family Controls: the app does not open, full stop. On Android there is no equivalent API without an Accessibility Service, so Auster runs a usage-stats guard that detects the reach and puts a full-screen block wall in front of it within about a second. Home always works; the wall is honest about being a wall.
Can I cheat?+
You can quit, after the Interceptor's ten seconds. It is logged as a failure, it breaks your streak, and the verdict arrives within seconds. Auster does not fight the operating system; it makes taking the option back cost something.
What does the AI actually see?+
Your goal text and your declared weakness, truncated to 200 characters each. Never your app list, never your usage. Verdicts are rate-limited to 20 per hour, always return something (a templated line if the model is unavailable), and are English-only in every locale.
What is free and what is Elite?+
Civilian is free: three sessions a day, full blocking in both protocols, the Interceptor, verdicts, a four-week wall and fourteen days of analytics. Elite is unlimited sessions, a thirteen-week wall, ninety days of analytics and Vulnerability Hours. Prices are shown in the app and you can cancel any time.
Which devices?+
iPhone on iOS 16 or later. Android 7.0 (API 24) or later. No tablets for now. Sign in with Apple, Google, or stay anonymous with a local identity.
What happens to my data?+
Sessions, goals and verdicts are stored under your account with row-level security; blocked-app selection never leaves the device. You can delete the account, and everything under it, from Settings. Details in the Privacy Policy below.
Deployment
The weak scroll. The disciplined build. Choose.
Launching on the App Store and Google Play. Both buttons go live the moment the stores do.
Built to lose you as a user faster than any app you own.