Grimes Debuts Cute AI Plushies Designed To Make Screen Time A Thing Of The Past
Images and video screenshot via Curio
Grimes has pulled out yet another trick out of her hat. Known for her avant-garde and futuristic music, and for being the mother of Elon Musk’s children, she has now taken a squeeze out of plush toys—specifically, artificial intelligence-powered ones. Collaborating with Silicon Valley startup Curio and OpenAI, the musician has introduced a line of cuddly, interactive companions that promise not only fun but also a learning experience for children.
Image via Curio
Far from being traditional stuffed animals that would speak predetermined sentences when you pushed them, ‘Gabbo’, ‘Grem’, and ‘Grok’ are true conversational partners designed to adapt to and reflect their little owners’ personalities.
Image via Curio
Each character in this playful ensemble is underpinned by the OpenAI language model, giving them distinct personalities and answering questions from kids, blending education with a dash of fun. Grok is a friendly rocket, Grem is a pink-obsessed space alien, and Gabbo is an eternally curious adventurer.
Image via Curio
All three dolls were designed by Grimes, who also voiced Grok herself. Notably, this character is not to be confused with Elon Musk’s own Grok AI chatbot as they’re entirely unrelated. The toy’s name “Grok” is trademarked by Curio and is a playful abbreviation of “Grocket,” inspired by the exposure to SpaceX rockets that Grimes’ children have had.
Video screenshot via Curio
Powering these lovable companions is the Curio Voice Box, a technological hub consisting of a cloud-connected processor, battery, speaker, and microphone. With this smart technology, the creators endeavor to steer children’s gaze from their screens so as to engage their minds more actively with physical interaction. The toys, in fact, were crafted with Grimes’ kids in mind.
Image via Curio
Video screenshot via Curio
“I really feel like this is also the first step towards also sort of reducing screen time as much as humanly possible… I think when you take the screens out of it, the human mind, it just tends to work so much better, and people aren’t stuck in a state of constant sort of dopamine hits that’s disabled them in other aspects of their life,” the musician shares in a chat with Curio’s founders. “I’m curious how when we can start moving things back more into audio, how this affects us.”
Grimes is a firm believer of AI’s possibilities, previously making her voice available to musicians everywhere who wish to feature her in their songs “without penalty.”
Taking child safety into account, these toys connect to Wi-Fi but deliberately omit cameras or screens. The accompanying app provides parents with transcripts of conversations between their child and the toy, adhering to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. These transcripts are stored for 90 days before deletion.
Image via Curio
Priced at US$99 each, the AI toys are up for preorder on the Curio website. The initial orders are set to be shipped in early 2024, potentially ushering in a new chapter where kids’ imagination meets artificial smarts.
