Q

 by  Saul Kessler

“Q” is a dynamic companion toy that has the ability to share in a child’s interests and adventures. Through spoken language, Q can assist with homework, tell stories, relay messages, and play games. Underneath Q’s huggable exterior is an Android-enabled device that performs voice recognition, text to speech, and retrieves filtered content from the Internet. Q can both learn from and educate its owner, creating a unique relationship full of discovery and wonder.

Saul is a multifaceted designer who during the course of his career has strived to understand all the components of a project and how they relate. With a career that spans many years he has explored numerous fields that now assist him in his quest as an Interaction Designer / Creative Technologist. With stints in advertising, music, fashion, photography and even the financial world, contributes to his success. During his years in advertising Saul did everything from creating presentations, video editing, and animation to heading a dept responsible for Internet/Intranet development. He was a Photographer at Maxim, designed and ran a successful online boutique (along with his wife). Passionate about music he was in a band that appeared on network TV (even playing on a song used in a commercial for the MTV Music Awards), was a Motion Graphic Intern at MTV Networks and also participated in financial services where he assisted in ventures and even learned how to trade futures.

At ITP Saul has been able to take his experience a step farther and through his education in Interaction Design he produced his favorite invention to date: the “Musical Paintbrush” a paintbrush that plays music based on the color of the paint. Saul was so inspired by children’s reactions to his paintbrush, that for his thesis, he wanted to combine all his skills while exploring storytelling, character development, toy design though mobile technology to produce a toy, a companion that gave children access to a world of information via the internet.