RBR50 Spotlight – Embodied’s Moxie Social Companion Robot

Description:
In April 2020, Los Angeles-based Embodied Inc. formally launched Moxie, an engaging robot companion for children designed to promote social, emotional, and cognitive development through play-based learning. Embodied representatives have acknowledged that their vision is a “moonshot,” but the social imperatives for this new class of child development tool forced the company to overcome a number of significant challenges in unique ways.

Analysis:
There have been other attempts at developing social robots for children, many of them little more than advanced, consumer-class toys, but a few like Moxie were designed specifically to promote social engagement and cognitive development. These systems largely failed to find a commercial footing.The developers of Moxie have learned from these earlier attempts. They also benefited from a new generation of critical enablers – powerful microprocessors, computer vision and machine learning – that provide advanced capabilities at relatively low cost.In addition to the advanced technologies incorporated into Moxie, the Embodied team also created a specialized curriculum for Moxie based on child development research that makes interacting with the robot fun and engaging. Embodied also opted for a subscription model for Moxie’s launch that includes software and curricula updates, access to the Global Robotics Laboratory, an online children portal with games and stories, and behavioral analytics via the Embodied Moxie app.Taken together – the technologies, the business model, and the decades of children’s development research – make Moxie a moonshot with its heart in the right place. – Dan Kara