Grumble - Know your hunger before your body has to scream for it.
Designing a speculative hunger-sensing tool in 4 days that makes an invisible body signal visible, social, and actionable for Fig Build 2026.
Role
Visual & Motion Design
Timeline
4 days
March 2026
Team
Catherine Jia
Sabrina Chen
Shuang Liang
Leveraged Skills
Visual interface design
Micro-animation motion
Motion design
Grumble - Know your hunger before your body has to scream for it.
Designing a speculative hunger-sensing tool in 4 days that makes an invisible body signal visible, social, and actionable for Fig Build 2026.
Role
Visual & Motion Design
Timeline
4 days
March 2026
Team
Catherine Jia
Sabrina Chen
Shuang Liang
Leveraged Skills
Visual interface design
Micro-animation motion
Motion design
Overview
Reimagining hunger as a sense you can finally see.
Reimagining hunger as a sense you can finally see.
Food has always been one of the quietest ways people take care of each other — showing up with lunch, texting "have you eaten?", noticing when someone's running low. But hunger itself is invisible. You can't see it on someone's face, and half the time you don't even notice it in yourself until you're already past it.
That tension became the starting point for Grumble — a speculative tool built around the question: what if hunger didn't have to be invisible?
Food has always been one of the quietest ways people take care of each other — showing up with lunch, texting "have you eaten?", noticing when someone's running low. But hunger itself is invisible. You can't see it on someone's face, and half the time you don't even notice it in yourself until you're already past it.
That tension became the starting point for Grumble — a speculative tool built around the question: what if hunger didn't have to be invisible?
JUMP TO PROTOTYPE
VIEW DEV POST SUBMISSION
The Current Space
We eat every day, but hunger remains one of the least understood senses of human.
Adults aged 18–34 have the highest rate of meal skipping of any age group, at 38%.
Adults aged 18–34 have the highest rate of meal skipping of any age group, at 38%.
Across multiple studies, time pressure is ranked as the single strongest reason people cite for skipping meals PubMed Central — not a lack of food, but a failure to notice hunger until it's too late to act on it.
Across multiple studies, time pressure is ranked as the single strongest reason people cite for skipping meals PubMed Central — not a lack of food, but a failure to notice hunger until it's too late to act on it.
How it started
Grumble started as a question about sensing hunger. It became a signal visible to people who are close to you and transforms in to act of caring.
The Solution
Introducing Grumble
Introducing Grumble
Grumble tracks your blood glucose-derived hunger index in real time — and turns a private body signal into a shared, social experience.
Grumble tracks your blood glucose-derived hunger index in real time — and turns a private body signal into a shared, social experience.
Core Flows
01 A friend noticed you were hungry, before you did
01 A friend noticed you were hungry, before you did
A friend's hunger check-in lands on your lock screen before you've even thought about food. Not an alarm — a nudge from someone who cares.
A friend's hunger check-in lands on your lock screen before you've even thought about food. Not an alarm — a nudge from someone who cares.
02 Tell your hunger what it wants
Type what you're craving and Grumble finds it nearby. Your craving isn't just an order — it's an open invitation.
03 See who nearby is hungry for the same thing
Your hunger index appears on a live map alongside your friends'. Matching hunger levels surface the opportunity to eat together before the moment passes.
04 View friends hunger status and remind them to eat
Spot a friend deep in the red and send them a virtual feed. It lands as a real notification — playful, warm, impossible to ignore.
05 Understand what your hunger has been trying to tell you
Your personal hunger profile shows patterns across days and weeks — so you can anticipate the next crash before it happens.
02 Tell your hunger what it wants
Type what you're craving and Grumble finds it nearby. Your craving isn't just an order — it's an open invitation.
03 See who nearby is hungry for the same thing
Your hunger index appears on a live map alongside your friends'. Matching hunger levels surface the opportunity to eat together before the moment passes.
04 View friends hunger status and remind them to eat
Spot a friend deep in the red and send them a virtual feed. It lands as a real notification — playful, warm, impossible to ignore.
05 Understand what your hunger has been trying to tell you
Your personal hunger profile shows patterns across days and weeks — so you can anticipate the next crash before it happens.
BEHIND THE SIGNAL
How a body signal becomes a number you can act on
How a body signal becomes a number you can act on
Glucose drops 60–90 min before you feel hungry. Grumble reads the signal before your body has to shout.
Glucose drops 60–90 min before you feel hungry. Grumble reads the signal before your body has to shout.
What we want
We believe hunger is more than a sensory. It's a signal, a conversation, and an invitation.
Ideation
How might we remind people to eat according to their body's hunger signals — and make it easier to notice, understand, and act on?
Goal
Visualizing Appetite: A Color-Coded Semantic System
Visualizing Appetite: A Color-Coded Semantic System
My teammate and I analyzed brand visual guidelines and mood boards to bridge the gap between LA’s "cinematic energy" and the Metro’s "rigid" reality.
My teammate and I analyzed brand visual guidelines and mood boards to bridge the gap between LA’s "cinematic energy" and the Metro’s "rigid" reality.
Visualizing hunger data through clock metaphor
Visualizing hunger data through clock metaphor
Daily view: Identify the exact moment of hunger to plan meals.
Daily view: Identify the exact moment of hunger to plan meals.
Utilizing a 24-hour circular dial to mirror the natural circadian rhythm. The radial heatmap provides an intuitive "clock-look" that maps body signals to specific times of day
Utilizing a 24-hour circular dial to mirror the natural circadian rhythm. The radial heatmap provides an intuitive "clock-look" that maps body signals to specific times of day
Weekly view: Compare fluctuations and identify anomalies across the week
Weekly view: Compare fluctuations and identify anomalies across the week
Unfolding the circular clock into vertical time-strips. This linear alignment allows for side-by-side comparison, making it easy to spot if hunger peaks shifted
Unfolding the circular clock into vertical time-strips. This linear alignment allows for side-by-side comparison, making it easy to spot if hunger peaks shifted
how i present the work
Check out our slide presention
Check out our slide presention
In less than 3 hours, I crafted this presentation of its visuals, layouts, and refined on the details.
In less than 3 hours, I crafted this presentation of its visuals, layouts, and refined on the details.
My Takeaways
What I learned from my first Fig Build competition…
What I learned from my first Fig Build competition…
Think beyond conventional patterns and explore creative interactions
Think beyond conventional patterns and explore creative interactions
FigBuild taught me to push past expected solutions and consider more imaginative interaction patterns that solve problems in a memorable and intuitive way.
FigBuild taught me to push past expected solutions and consider more imaginative interaction patterns that solve problems in a memorable and intuitive way.
Balance vision with execution by leaving enough time to build
Balance vision with execution by leaving enough time to build
I learned that strong ideas need enough time for both vibe coding and mocking, so the concept can actually come to life instead of staying at the idea stage.
I learned that strong ideas need enough time for both vibe coding and mocking, so the concept can actually come to life instead of staying at the idea stage.
Storytelling and time management are just as important as the final design
Storytelling and time management are just as important as the final design
A compelling project is not only about what you build, but also how clearly you tell the story behind it and how well you manage your time to bring the idea together.
A compelling project is not only about what you build, but also how clearly you tell the story behind it and how well you manage your time to bring the idea together.
Let’s stay in touch
Resume
My resume.pdf
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