Talking toys have always had some sort of appeal to kids, whether it was Teddy Ruxpin telling stories to children in the 80’s or Tickle Me Elmo wishing kids would give him a cuddle. Lately, though, “smart” talking toys have appeared to be making a move in the market, and they’re picking up in popularity.
First up is CogniToys’ Watson, which can actually have a conversation with its owners, instead of using pre-recorded software to interact with them. The toy, which is currently going through KickStarter, is the latest project from CogniToys, put together by New York start-up Elemental Path. So far, it’s already been a massive success, already surpassing its $50,000 funding goal and pushing well past $70,000, with four weeks still left to go in the campaign.
The toy, which resembles a green dinosaur with a cute little grin, uses IBM’s artificial intelligence technology, Watson, when it comes to answering questions posed by kids, who ask by pressing a blue button located on its stomach. From there, it utilizes an online knowledge database to produce an answer.
“You can ask it a plain-English question and get a plain-English answer,” said Elemental Path co-founder JP Benini about the project. That’s a far cry from Teddy Ruxpin’s limitations.
And he’s not the only one making a change to the toy scene. I4U reports that Mattel is hard at work on an innovative new doll in its Barbie line, Hello Barbie, which it recently introduced at the New York Toy Fair. It also utilizes speech recognition software, so that she will respond to questions posed by kids, using Wi-Fi based technology to come up with the best answers. In addition, Hello Barbie will also be able to play games with kids, and make all-ages friendly jokes as well.
The doll, priced at $74.99, will be released sometime this year, and comes with rechargeable batteries, as children will still be able to play with her while she recharges. You can check out the doll in action below.
