Britannica for Parents talks with Craig Allen and Eleanor Hsu of Embodied, a robotics company that has launched Moxie, a new type of teaching robot.
What can children learn from robots? In recent years, a variety of robotic devices have been developed for schools and families that teach children academic concepts, such as coding or electronics. As advancements continue in robotics engineering and artificial intelligence (AI), robotic devices have become more and more sophisticated, to the point that parents are now having to consider what kinds of relationships they want their children to have with the robots in their world.
Britannica for Parents recently had an opportunity to discuss this new frontier of robotics with Craig Allen and Eleanor Hsu of Embodied, a company that has developed a teaching robot named Moxie. In fact, Moxie is first in a whole new category of robots: animate companions.
Craig Allen, Chief Creative Officer of Embodied, describes Moxie as more of a peer and a coach than a device. Allen explains, “The child engages with Moxie as an animate companion because there’s a relationship between them. Moxie is not just entertainment that the child consumes. With Moxie we’re creating a space for social technology that benefits children and families in new ways.”
Moxie has the ability to understand and express emotions with emotive speech, along with facial expressions and body language. The software that runs Moxie lets children engage with the device through natural interactions using both verbal conversations and facial expressions. The goal is to create a trusting relationship that will teach and promote developmental skills.
This summer, 100 families will welcome Moxie into their homes to participate in a free pilot program. Eleanor Hsu, Head of Sales and Marketing at Embodied, describes this summer pilot as a “pioneer mentor program” that will provide important feedback about how Moxie can best support families. Children are put in the role of “robot mentor,” which allows them to teach Moxie about what it means to be a good friend to humans. Mentoring the robot also builds children’s self confidence.
Embodied is also working to create opportunities for the costs of the robot to be covered by a family’s health insurance. This would happen when a child needs social and emotional support. By engaging with Moxie in meaningful play, children explore social-emotional concepts such as kindness, friendship, empathy, and respect. Weekly themes and “missions” help children develop important life skills such as turn taking, active listening, and problem-solving.
Moxie as Copilot
When Moxie joins a family, the relationship goes beyond just the child and the robot. Allen describes Moxie’s role as a “copilot” to the parent. Allen points out that the Moxie Parent App provides a dashboard to help parents understand their child’s developmental progress with Moxie. Parents can use the app to gain key insights to their child’s social, emotional, and cognitive development during the child’s engagement with Moxie. For example, Moxie can let the parent know if their child has been using negative language and, through the app, make suggestions for helping their child use kind words and express compliments. The technology gives the parents “guidance at the right time and place.” Over time, Moxie learns more about the child and can better personalize its content to help with individual developmental goals.
Parents often have privacy concerns about tech devices that collect information about their children. Allen and Hsu point out that Embodied has taken careful steps to ensure that information provided by children and families is handled with high standards of privacy and security. Moxie is COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) Safe Harbor certified and any personally identifiable data and sensitive information is encrypted.
Beyond the Screen
In initial testing, many parents find that robotic devices like Moxie are a positive alternative to screen time. As the name of the company implies, Embodied places a high value on the tangible, three-dimensional nature of children’s interactions with Moxie. Allen points out that “our neurons fire differently in a dimensional experience than when we’re just looking at a flat screen.” The meaning of the child’s experience changes when the child is sharing a physical space with their animate companion.
Allen and the team at Embodied see Moxie as a tool for helping children explore and discover new ideas outside of the regular circle of experience. Allen sees this new wave of animate companions as a wonderful opportunity to “marry science, art, and technology.”
To learn more about Moxie, visit https://embodied.com/.