Rando

Rando is a social rover born out of the desire for playful interactions in physical space despite far distances apart. Those who have a Rando act as Host to visitors from around the world, the only catch is their guests are restricted to the sentience of Rando’s small, toy-like rover form. This embodiment restricts how guests can move, communicate, and interact with hosts.

This project was driven by an interest in human-computer interactions where the human and computer components become blurred . What happens when an opportunity for AI embodiment is outsourced back to a human? How do we encourage unpredictably human fun while still maintaining a sense of safety and control? Rando doesn’t answer all of the questions it raises, but its use sparks speculative thinking about the future of digital and physical play.

Hosts activate Rando once they place and orient the camera unit to face one of two ways on the bulk of the rover. Once powered on, guests are able to embody Rando through Host invitation or publicly configured rovers. As a guest, you are free to roam within the limits of the Hosts’s chosen environment, and even then your Host may eject you whenever they’d like.

With executive control in the hands of Hosts, guests are encouraged to be well-mannered so as to avoid their visit being cut short. The potentially fast turnaround of guests keeps things light and encourages playful expressions of humanity.

EARLY CONCEPT ART

This micro project is the product of collaboration with Joel Neely and Nick Marotta