According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple may be developing its own journaling app. The app, codenamed “Jurassic,” will reportedly encourage users to write journals to record their activities and thoughts and will be centred around improving mental health. As a first-party iPhone app, it will also automatically compile information users want, such as health records and text messages.
Journaling, also known as “writing meditation,” is the act of writing on paper what comes to your mind or what you think. It is believed to help individuals face their inner selves by moving their hands and writing on paper instead of just thinking with their heads. The act of journaling has been linked to improved mental health, and it seems that Apple is always looking for new possibilities to improve the mental health of its users.
The new app will act as a life tracker, allowing users to analyze their typical day, where they go, who they interact with, and when they deviate from their standard routine. The app could even help individuals figure out the difference between colleagues and friends using a feature called “All Day People Discovery.” It is unclear if it requires an iPhone and an app, but it could work by detecting proximity to other individuals.
The comprehensive information Apple may collect is not necessarily new, but the personalization feature that uses the collected data to suggest relevant diary themes could be very compelling. For example, if users bring their iPhones when they run, the app could suggest workout-related articles. All data is stored only on the device, and the diary suggestions appear automatically deleted after four weeks.
Apple has not announced anything about the diary app, and it will likely not announce it until June’s developer conference at the earliest. However, the move could potentially drive out existing third-party journaling apps as Apple continues to pursue mental and physical health features.
