Ring 'm Up
Final Bachelor Project // Semester: B32 // sep 2024 – feb 2025 // Squad: Transforming Practices // Coach: Caroline Hummels, Daisy Yoo // Collaboration/expert: Buitenlijn
Expertise areas: Creativity & aesthetics, User & society, Business & entrepreneurship, Technology & realization, Math data & computing
AI is quickly developing and implemented in many sectors, oftentimes for efficiency purposes. I aimed to explore the potential role of AI in the participation sector beyond efficiency-oriented directions. This resulted in Ring ‘m Up: a hybrid tool that infuses intervision meetings with fresh perspectives and open-ended qualities using AI-actors: Large Language Models with their own personality and background knowledge which provide input on conversations through reflective advice, followed by a corresponding image. The physical interface allows users control the pace of the interaction and select AI-actors.
Reflection
This project challenged me to incorporate everything I learned and deepen my digital prototyping skills. It allowed me to profile myself as a social designer with a knack for tech. For this project, I had specific goals and learning points, which I will reflect on:
- Focus on making to break free from my mind’s constraints
I emphasized making throughout the process, starting with the exploration phase and continuing through every iteration. While the results were far from perfect, I was able to balance my theoretical mindset with a more open-ended one. Presenting these outcomes and their insights formed the backbone of my process based on continuous grounded decisions.
- Explore and refine my view on aesthetics of interaction from a first person perspective
Although I have come to believe that the approach to aesthetics of interaction is deeply personal and case-specific, the way to thoroughly explore this for me is continuous making and reflecting on my vision in relation to the project. This naturally results in a design aesthetic that fits the purpose and my design identity.
- Learn to individually manage and lead a project
I was very eager to create value for others, but I learned that this can also be overdone. I learned to balance my design expertise and vision with the insights and needs of others. One example of this is the mapping of my vision among possible roles of AI to inform my practice. I learned to make strong design decisions informed by my vision and to openly communicate them while maintaining an open mindset.
- Exploring possibilities to create value beyond economic value
By designing with principles (open-source, local, modular) fitting alternative systems and paradigms (post-capitalism, transformation paradigm), I created a design, balancing value in the current system, while fitting alternative paradigms. From this, I learned that current designs can indeed surpass the current economic value system.
- Finding the fun in the process
While this goal is ongoing throughout my development, I found that adopting a making mindset and finding common ground with people (passion for participation with Buitenlijn, programming skills with Wesley Hartogs) is what I enjoy and what gives me energy.
