Hackaball was a programmable toy for kids, developed at Made by Many. The challenge was taking something complex (programming logic) and making it feel playful and accessible for 6 to 8 year olds, while building a brand that could carry a crowdfunding campaign.

I paired with another designer to run co-design sessions with children, developing the brand and product experience from research up. Designing for an audience that can’t easily articulate what they want or why they want it changes how you work: you watch more than you ask, you prototype faster and you trust what happens in the room over what gets said about it afterwards. The sessions shaped everything from the visual language to the interaction model.