From Text to Tangible: Build Your Own AI Companion

From Text to Tangible: Build Your Own AI Companion introduces attendees to industrial design approaches that can embody AI by exploring various materials, physical forms, and tangible interfaces. Participants will translate conversational AI personas to build tangible appearance prototypes of small AI companions that visually convey personality and promote everyday interaction. Attendees will engage in rapid prototyping and group critique to understand how physical design details can influence users’ trust and emotional connection. This studio also introduces fundamental practices in color, material, and finish (CMF) and form studies. Finally, attendees and facilitators will discuss why current AI devices often have cold aesthetics and speculate on how industrial design can shift this perception to design everyday AI companions.