JawBuddy
JawBuddy is a digital self-help app that helps people who grind their teeth (bruxism) to reduce jaw and head pain in the long term through evidence-based exercises, stress management and AR-assisted feedback.
Leon and Moritz both suffer from CMD themselves – a chronic temporomandibular disorder often caused by night-time teeth grinding. Whilst Moritz, as a physiotherapist, was researching how digital applications could support patients in performing exercises correctly, Leon, as someone affected by the condition, experienced the frustration of the lack of effective, long-term solutions.
This personal experience led to the idea of developing a digital self-therapy app that provides structured guidance and motivation for those affected.
With the arrival of Christian, a dentist and oral and maxillofacial surgeon, the team gained medical expertise straight from the clinic. Benjamin, a cyber-security expert and full-stack developer, took charge of the technical implementation. This is how KauSchlau came into being: the first app to combine scientifically grounded physiotherapy, AR technology and digital coaching into a personalised self-therapy programme.
What has been your biggest challenge so far?
Our biggest challenge was striking a balance between product development, financing and regulatory requirements.
We operate in the medical sector, which means we have to meet the highest standards in data protection, clinical validation and quality assurance. At the same time, we are working with limited resources and a tight schedule leading up to market launch. Maintaining a clear roadmap despite this complexity was definitely the biggest organisational and mental challenge.
Your tips for founders
Talk to users sooner!
We’ve learnt how important it is to seek feedback from potential users at a very early stage, even if the product isn’t perfect yet. Another point: don’t be afraid of early, incomplete prototypes. The sooner you test, the more precisely you can make adjustments.
And: having the right team is everything. Our interdisciplinary combination of physiotherapy, dentistry, software development and management is the key to tackling such a complex topic in a truly holistic way.
What happens next?
Our EXIST start-up grant runs from October 2025 to September 2026. During this period, we will focus on clinical validation and market entry in Germany.
In the long term, we aim to establish KauSchlau as a digital health application (DiGA) in the field of digital health / eHealth / dentistry, thereby helping millions of people who suffer daily from jaw and head pain caused by bruxism.
