Hoodbot: Empowering Citizens to Co-Design Urban AI futures

Description:

Automated devices, from self-driving cars to autonomous street cleaners, are increasingly present in urban environments. While tech companies explore new business opportunities, the impact of these "urban robots" on citizens' lives remains largely undiscussed. We developed Hoodbot Kit, a design toolkit enabling residents to create their own city bots. This toolkit was implemented in a two-year co-design project in Rotterdam and various workshops. Our findings show how co-design and collaborative prototyping of Hoodbots can help democratize AI and robotics in urban settings.