A Southern Highlands mother has transformed a moment of personal crisis into a nationally recognised tech solution, creating a navigation app designed for neurodiverse and anxious Australians.
From Overwhelming Drive to Award-Winning Idea
Bowral resident Nicole Mazur was driving her autistic son to the city when the stress of using a conventional navigation app became too much. Forced to pull over, she felt overwhelmed and upset, a moment that sparked a determination to build a better tool. As a mother of two autistic sons, Mazur understood the unique challenges neurodivergent people face with standard apps. "I went home that day and thought, I need to do something," she recalled. "My boys are going to grow up and they're going to drive. They'll need something more tailored for them."
Building NavinMaps: Calmer, Predictable Navigation
The result of her determination is NavinMaps, an application that reimagines how navigation information is presented. The app breaks journeys into predictable, easy-to-process steps to reduce cognitive load. It offers features including quiet-route options to avoid stressful traffic, and significantly reduces visual and auditory overload that can cause anxiety. The app also includes accessibility tools like step-free routing for wheelchair users.
Following six months of intensive research and community consultation, Mazur discovered the app's potential reached far beyond the autism community. "People with anxiety, people with Alzheimer's disease - they've all said it's calmer and easier to understand," she said. This feedback highlighted the app's broad utility in making everyday travel less stressful for a wide range of individuals and families.
National Recognition and Future Hopes
In December 2025, Mazur's innovation received significant national validation when she won the Woman in Tech category at a national awards ceremony. Mazur admitted she "did not expect to win the award at all," noting the impressive work of the other finalists. "The other women in my category were doing such amazing things... so I was very surprised," she said.
The path to this point, however, has involved considerable personal challenge. Mazur is self-funding the app's development, a situation she describes as "really difficult." With assistance from a small team, she has launched a GoFundMe campaign to fund further work. She now looks ahead to the Paris global awards next year, hoping the international stage will attract investors and partners to help grow NavinMaps. "It would be amazing to sit in a room with all these incredible women and talk about the app," she said.
For Nicole Mazur, the award is more than just trophy; it's a powerful affirmation. "Every challenge in my life has pushed me toward creating something meaningful," she reflected. "This award reminds me that steady effort, resilience and compassion can create real change." Her story stands as a testament to how personal necessity, when met with innovation and perseverance, can develop into a tool with the power to improve countless lives across Australia.
