Kidsburgh : Pittsburgh Innovates

Educational games should be fun as well as instructive, which is what Digital Dream Labs is all about.
 
Founded by an ambitious trio, all grads of Carnegie Mellon Entertainment Technology Center, the team got its start in the museum space with an interactive table installed at the Children’s Museums of Pittsburgh and Houston. The startup is currently in Innovation Works' Alpha Lab. 
 
“Our initial goal was to build a game that would be, one day, the Nintendo of museum gaming,” says Matt Stewart, co founder of the company. He is joined by Justin Sabo and Peter Kinney.
 
The team is in the throes of creating a consumer version of its museum game. To move it along, they have launched a Pilot Program for Pittsburgh, giving local kids, ages four to 12, a chance to offer feedback and purchase it at a discounted price.
 
The game is expected to go on sale for $100. Beta testers will pay $80. In return for  play testing, beta players will get their name in the game credits and receive a free retail upgrade when the product goes on the market.
 
The toy-to-tablet educational platform calls on players to use logic, sequencing, teamwork and fine-motor skills to master the puzzle through digital action. The skills learned are the basis for computational thinking, says Sabo.
 
The game, tentatively named “Cork the Volcano,” is played as an add-on to an iPad or Mac. The hardware includes a block tray and puzzle pieces. As children play, they learn to write simple programs with the puzzle pieces as they solve logic puzzles. The ultimate goal is to save the island; timing is key.
 
“We’ve been trying to figure out how to bridge tech and education in a meaningful way,” says Sabo. “It will definitely change how people look at educational games for children.”
 
The plan is to build momentum and make a big splash at Toy Fair 2014.
 
Watch it in action!
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Matt Stewart, Justin Sabo, Digital Dream Labs

Image courtesy of Digital Dream Labs. From From left to right: Justin Sabo, Corinne Charlton, Matt Stewart and Peter Kinney. 
 

School projects today certainly aren’t what they used to be. They are way more exciting.

With do-it-yourself robotic technology from BirdBrain Technologies, a CMU spinout, it won’t be long until the stationary diorama is transformed into an action-packed drama.
 
Founder Tom Lauwers is creating kits with all the electronics one needs to build a robot and become an aspiring roboticist. It will take high school projects to the next level.

Originally from San Francisco, Lauwers has spent the last five years working on his doctorate in product design at CMU’s CREATE Lab, tinkering with robot kits and electronics. His goal is to create educationally relevant tools that get high school and college students excited about the world of robotics.
 
His first product, Finch, was a stingray-shaped robot that detects orientation and entertains students while teaching them the finer points of interactive programming. It is currently being used as part of high school science curriculums.
 
The Hummingbird kit is low-cost hardware and software system that allows students to build expressive and communicative robots out of arts and crafts materials. Lauwers points to a project on the table, made from not much more than circuitry and wiring, a few cardboard boxes, foam board and construction paper.
 
“It’s intentionally made not like a toy so people feel empowered to mess with electronics,” he explains “It’s not magical or hard. Once you have something anyone can buy, people will use it in ways you don’t expect.”
 
BirdBrain is manufacturing the kits in China. Many are already being used in public and private schools.
 
The company is one of many up for an award at the 2013 DATA Awards on Thursday night, May 16^th, on the North Side. General admission tickets for $25 are available starting at 7 p.m.
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Tom Lauwers, BirdBrain Technologies

When Rebecca Gaynier launched iTwixie, the mother of three girls hoped to create an online space where girls could confidently and honestly express themselves—and send a message to companies who cater to tween-age girls.

The social media partnership is taking off. Now in its fourth year, iTwixie has established itself as a positive voice in social media for young girls, ages 7-12. The firm recently relaunched its website, which is attracting10,000 unique views a month.  Substantial growth in the next three years is projected, says Gaynier.

For the AlphaLab startup company, the measure of success is about engaging young girls who come to the colorful website and stay for a solid period, long enough to post comments and vote on pressing issues of the day. On average, girls spend at least 10 minutes on iTwixie, which may not sound like much but is actually a lifetime for girls this age.

“It’s a new era for clients in this marketplace,” Gaynier explains. “Kids today are looking at three screens at the same time. We’re getting comments and feedback, which shows they are captivated. That’s what we’re really looking for.”

The power of the iTwixie platform is the candid feedback that young girls offer to companies and services that want to know what they’re thinking. Many of the products out there for tween girls really stink, says Gaynier. As a business, we’re empowering girls to send a message to companies that says this is what we want.

For example, when Abercrombie began selling pushup bikini bras targeted for seven-year-olds, iTwixie girls expressed their disapproval. When asked what kind of bathing they prefer to wear, they confirmed they preferred bathing suits that stay on in the pool and are brightly colored to one that makes them look like a teenager.

“It’s not what girls want,” says Gaynier.

Companies engage iTwixie because they want to send young girls a message and hear back from them. Robert Morris, for example, recently hired iTwixie to organize a series that would send a message that RMU is a magnet school for girls empowerment.

We only work with organizations, businesses or brands who share our mission to empower girls, says Gaynier. Actually, there's quite a few out there.

“There’s a payoff in this,” she says.

Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Rebecca Gaynier, iTwixie

Since its inception as a website in 2006, The Motherhood has celebrated the power of women to change the world and make it a better place for children.
 
This week the award-winning mega-blog for mothers, based in Aspinwall, launched a new website that has cemented its position as a for-profit social media marketing company. 
 
With a completely new website, and an assist from Pittsburgh-based Fireman Creative and University of Pittsburgh’s Instutute for Entrepreneurial Excellence (IEE), The Motherhood hopes to achieve what few in the marketing business have done successfully to date: harness the power of social media influencers, in this case mommy bloggers, to promote national brands.
 
The Motherhood was founded by longtime friends Cooper Munroe of Fox Chapel and Emily McKhann of New York City. They created the site in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, helping to bring a virtual community of mothers together who were united in their desire to assist families hit hardest by the storm.  
 
“The power of women drove the entire thing,” Munroe told Pop City in 2009. “We saw the power of the web for good and how, by doing our little bit with the website, we were able to make a difference.”
 
Savvy marketing women— they met each other in 1988 working for a public relations firm in Washington, D.C.—they had a long range plan from the start: to nurture a community of woman who would become the social media influencers in their future marketing business.
 
That day has come.
 
“It has been a wonderful journey,” says Munroe. “We work with organizations (and corporations) that really want to reach moms who are social media influencers with a deep and loyal readership. The word of mouth impact is unparalleled, women talking to women about what they care about.”
 
As a marketing company, The Motherhood organizes social campaigns and strategies for companies, promoting everything from the health and welfare of Sub-Saharan mothers to good hygiene, healthy pets and family fun.
 
For example, there’s the Listerine 21-Day Challenge to improve oral health. Merck for Mothers addresses maternal mortality rates in Uganda. The Hershey Camp Bondfire promotes s’mores in the summer.
 
The Motherhood connects the campaigns through thousands of blogger followers who push the stories out on their own blogs. Some of the bloggers, not all, are paid by The Motherhood for their service.
 
Their reach is tantalizing. The Motherhood has more than 14,000 followers--6,000 followers on Facebook alone--a core network of 3000 mommy bloggers and another 10,000 potential bloggers across the country. The company counts many Fortune 500 companies among its clients: Johnson&Johnson, Bayer, Verizon, ConAgra Foods, Frito Lay to name a few.
 
“The most exciting thing is how people in Pittsburgh came together and are reshaping the advertising industry,” says Paul Fireman. “Through the magic of the community they've built, they only need to grab the ticket and take the bus.”
 
“It's not a mommy blog. It’s a whole new marketing channel, a sophisticated business that connects influencers to brands,” adds Bob Stein with Pitt’s IEE. 
 
There may be a question, for some, of corporate accountability. Do social media marketing companies like The Motherhood have a responsibility to ensure that companies are as altruistic as their campaigns claim?
 
Munroe and McKhann believe that is not their role. As a marketing firm, they create, package and deliver information on the campaigns and programs to bloggers who, in turn, spin it into prose on their own websites.

"We believe in the campaigns we work on and the clients projects we bring to bloggers. We take on campaigns that raise all boats," Munroe says.  
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Cooper Munroe and Emily McKhann, The Motherhood; Paul Fireman, Fireman Creative; Bob Stein, University of Pittsburgh
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kids today. Give them a digital device and they will have it mastered by the age of two.
 
Pittsburgh startup AppCertain wants to help by providing parents with a platform that gives them the tools to stay abreast of their children’s digital prowess. Anytime a child downloads an app to their iOS device, AppCertain sends them an email with detailed information on the potential security risk and educational value of the download.
 
The company is the first to be selected by Birchmere Labs as a studio project, a new investment model for the region. Developed by Birchmere Ventures and partner Sean Ammirati, Birchmere Labs offers seed investments to early stage startups; the most promising among them are then selected as studio projects.
 
Unlike an accelerator or incubator, of which there are many in the region, Birchmere Labs is about taking the seed of an idea and spinning it out as a company. The designation comes with an undisclosed amount of funding and further mentoring from Birchmere’s experienced entrepreneurs, says Ammirati.
 
“Birchmere really helped me run with my idea,” says Spencer Whitman, co-founder and CEO of AppCertain. “We’re at the point now of slowly leaving the Birchmere nest, learning how to operate and stand on our own two feet.”
 
Whitman began developing AppCertain during his years at CMU where he was both an undergrad and grad student working at CyLab. When it comes to reviewing apps, restrictions, ratings and reviews aren’t working for parents, he says.
 
Parents need an easy way to monitor their children’s activity and teach them to be responsible digital citizens without having to take their device away or engage in constant confrontation.
 
The platform, which targets children between the ages of seven and 17, provides information on an app’s security risk and content value. Is an app, for example, capable of accessing sensitive information, like data or photos? How educational or violent is the content?
 
The idea is to give kids the freedom to make their own decisions while giving parents the ability to make sure their decisions are sound, he says.
 
AppCertain, currently in beta, is a free download, but hopes to be an app someday. It currently works only with iOS products--iPhone, iPod, iTouch and iPads--with plans to expand into the Android market.
 
The company has three full-time and four part-time employees and works out of Birchmere Ventures in the South Side.
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Sean Ammirati, Spencer Whitman, Birchmere Ventures
 
From left to right: Jim Newsome, Spencer Whitman, and Megan Gilligan.  Not pictured: Sean Ammirati, Lara Schenck, Karmyn Guthrie, and Cyrus Collier, courtesy of Birchmere Ventures

Social Ventures Partners' fast pitch is back, the fast-talking competition that pits some of the most innovative, smaller nonprofits in the region against each other for funding, prizes and visibility.
 
The good news is everyone wins.
 
Borrowing from the venture capitalist “elevator pitch,” the Social Innovation Fast Pitch is a two month program. SVP selects a dozen of some of the most promising philanthropic ideas and social entrepreneurs and gives them an opportunity to work with local leaders to fine-tune and hone their presentation skills into a three-minute pitch.
 
Yours truly is a coach this year, working with a small team to assist Bob Bechtold of the Sarah Heinz House with his pitch for Design House, an after-school program for middle school students that teaches STEM skills to kids when they’re not looking. Through the program, the students are developing the architectural plans for a new bathhouse that will actually be built at their summer camp.
 
“It’s a big hit with the kids,” Bechtold says. “It’s giving the kids a stake in their camp and a sense of belonging and contribution.” 
 
Design House will face some stiff competition at the final competition against other equally deserving programs: Strong Women, Strong Girls; Beverly’s Birthdays; Go! A Vehicle of Change; meetPGH; The Saxifrage School; Miracle League of South Hills; Camp COPES; Sustainable Solutions, Catholic Charities Free Health Care Center; and Quest for Wellness and Recovery Employment Project.
 
"Fast Pitch successfully teaches nonprofit leaders how to develop clear and concise messages to more effectively communicate,” says Elizabeth Visnic, director of social venture partners. ”The skills they gain not only help them to learn how to message their program, they gain immeasurable community support and have an opportunity to win unrestricted funding and prizes."
 
The Social Innovation Fast Pitch Finals will be held at the Fairmont Hotel on March 6^th from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Pop City will bestow a capacity prize at the event, with publisher and editor Tracy Certo serving as a judge. 
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Elizabeth Visnic, SVP
 
Image: Chuck Webb, Shepherd's Heart Veteran's Home, 2012 winner

A new children’s radio service, developed in Pittsburgh, is bringing the timeless charm of radio to children and their families along with the latest in educational programming.
 
iQ Kids Radio is a collaboration of WQED and SLB Radio Productions, a family-friendly, commercial-free service that mixes education and entertainment for listeners for 24-hours each Saturday.    
 
The concept is unique, leveraging the assets of PBS to provide trusted radio programming and the authentic voices of children, explains Larry Berger, executive director of SLB Radio, producer of the long-running Saturday Light Brigade.
 
The service is an expansion of the popular Saturday morning show. The programs were carefully developed, researched and vetted in terms of educational standards, he adds.

Programming features youth-created music, storytelling and news/commentary. Kids will learn during the day, boogie down with DJ Daddy Dance Party in the late afternoon and fall asleep at night to bedtime stories.
 
Soothing classical music plays through the night into the early morning hours.
 
"Kids and families need an alternative to what is currently available on the radio," says Berger.  “We’re really looking to present authentic children’s voices in a way nobody has.”
 
The voices of the children is a unique aspect of the program. SLB works with thousands of children a year to record their original stories, says Jennifer Stancil, executive director of educational partnerships for WQED and co-director of the service.
 
“I think kids radio represents what public media can and should be doing to encourage kids to listen imaginatively,” she says. “Commercial-free radio (for children) isn’t a niche but a roaring highway that not many are filling.”
 
iQ Kids Radio airs between midnight Friday and midnight Saturdays. Listeners can tune in by visiting the website or streaming through the free TuneIn Radio app for smartphones and tablets.
 
The service will be free during the pilot phase of the project. It was made possible through seed funding from Junior League of Pittsburgh, a founding partner, with additional support from The Grable Foundation the James McCandless Charitable Trust.
 
Feedback is welcome through wehearyouiqkidsradio.org
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Larry Berger, SLB, Jennifer Stancil, WQED

Among the latest Pittsburgh-based websites, blogs and apps to surface in recent weeks:
 
Treading Art is the region’s latest resource for cultural happenings in the city.
 
Christine Smith and Melissa LuVisi moved to Pittsburgh after graduating from UCLA, where they met. They were drawn to our region’s thriving arts community and the city’s drive to redevelop and expand.
 
Their background in business development, museum administration and curatorial management is perfect for reaching out to the creative communities in the city. TreadingArt will highlight the scene, promote cultural happenings and post reviews, photographs, interviews, commentary and critiques.
 
In the coming year, the duo plan to launch a membership program with access to arts events—underground openings, panels, tours and workshops.
 
“Eventually we would like to see this transpire into a physical space,” says LuVisi.  “We are truly thankful to have landed in such a receptive and innovative city.”
 
Look for the Weekend Treadings newsletter and agenda events in January of 2013.
 
Built In Pgh is connecting the dots for local entrepreneurs and innovators. The website, brought to you by the same people behind the RustBuilt Initiative, is a clearinghouse for the startup community, listing events, forums, job postings and company news.
 
And here’s several apps and games to keep small minds busy during the holidays.
 
IOnFuture is a cool way for middle schoolers to explore potential careers in the STEM fields. Considering a career as an ecologist or urban planner? How about an industrial designer or Veterinarian? This gives students an opportunity to learn different activities and hobbies they might try as they explore various career paths in science, technology, engineering and math fields.
 
The Lemonade Stand is a free educational iPad game that teaches children ages 3-6 about money and work by letting them actually run a virtual lemonade stand. The app was created through Idea Foundry’s Riveted program.
 
Online reviews comments that it teaches youngsters literacy and math skills while offering kudos for the rocking music.  
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Melissa LuVisi, Kit Mueller

Imagine the city as your personal playground. Three point lines around trash cans. Tether balls swinging overhead, inviting gameplay, with the goal of bringing people together and making the city a place of wonder and fun.
 
Obscure Games is back, bringing with it the best new urban games in the world for The City of Play Festival on October 13, noon to midnight. Sponsored by South Side game studio Schell Games, the festival is changing the way we see the city, says Adam Nelson, the master gamer behind it all. 
 
Since its inception in 2009, Obscure Games has been playing around Pittsburgh with live gaming events. (You may recall the Steel City Games Fest and Human Curling Tournament.)
 
Urban gameplay acts as a social glue that connects people through the environment, reinforcing the idea that players have ownership of the city, says Nelson.
 
The festival will feature about 15 game installations with streets, parks and public spaces as the backdrop. Games will be located on the North Side and around the Allegheny Center and Buhl Park. Play is open to the first 100 players with a ticket, but anyone of any age can play for free in Buhl Park.
 
Among the games is Circle Rules Football and Nelson’s own game called Nashville, which involves wandering the city and giving secret signals to others in a sort of old west showdown.
 
“Pittsburgh has an opportunity to use play to convey itself as an interesting and exciting, progressive city for young people to live,” says Nelson. “The fact that we’re a smaller city is a strength. It’s who we are and easier to build a community around this.”
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Adam Nelson, Obscure Games

As a social roboticist, Heather Knight is helping us see robots in new and entertaining ways.   
 
Robots can tell stories and make us laugh, says Knight who made her debut, accompanied by her endearing sidekick Data, at a 2010 TED Talk. The two have been performing together ever since.
 
Knight, who grew up in Lexington, Mass., is conducting her doctoral research at CMU’s Robotics Institute, attracted by the unique combination of fine arts, robotic and entertainment tech programs.

In keeping with her mission, one of the first things she did when she arrived was to take a census of all the robots on CMU's campus. There are 547 robots in all, not including those at NREC in Lawrenceville, nearly one robot for every student in the department, she says.

In addition to her academic studies, Knight has several ongoing robot projects. She runs a stand up comedy troupe robots, Marilyn Monrobot Labs, in New York City, which produces sensor-based electronic art performances.
 
She also was the founder of the NYC’s first Robot Film Festival, held this summer, and one of several behind Cyborg Cabaret at the New Hazlett Theatre last April, a variety show billed as “avant art-meets-science” theater.
 
She also made the Forbes List for 30 Under 30 in Science. 
 
It's all about breaking the boundaries in our understanding of robots and what they can do and attracting more people to science and technology.  Robots can speak our language and make us laugh in addition to helping humankind, she says.
 
“I want to make machines that will help humanity to flourish,” Knight adds.
 
Knight and Data will make an appearance during the Robot Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at CMU next month, which will be held during the RoboBusiness Leadership Summit. The summit will bring hundreds of robotics industry leaders to Pittsburgh for an Oct. 22-24 conference. 
 
Vote early and often for your favorite robot from the slate of nominees for the Robot Hall of Fame. Created by CMU in 2003, the hall honors both fictional and real robots. Among the nominees are one of Data’s relatives, WALL-E of movie fame and Rosie from the Jetsons. 
 
Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Heather Knight, CMU

Bringing up baby seems to get easier every day, thanks to advances in mechanical technology. But this one takes infant gear to a new level of ease.
 
Pittsburgh-based Thorley Industries, also known as 4Moms, is rolling out a robotic, one-touch portable crib that pops open without breaking a sweat. If you’ve ever tried this at home with the older technology, you know that getting a portable crib to stand can be as confounding a Rubik’s Cube. 
 
You know the joke, how many parents does it take to open a pack-and-play? All of them.
 
Dubbed “The Breeze,” Thorley’s latest entry on the baby gear market is as pretty to watch in action as their earlier products, the power-folding Origami stroller and the gently swaying mamaRoo. It also comes with a removable bassinet and a portable changing bag.
 
Thorley has raised $20 million led by Boston-based Bain Capital, the private investment firm founded by presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, to expand company product development, invest in supply chain and logistics and initiate global expansion, says Thorley.
 
With headquarters in the Strip District, Thorley employs 52 and sells its product in retail stores across the country as well as 23 countries overseas. The company recently made the Inc 5000 list at #743 and was listed at #55 in the Consumer Products and Services category.
 
Watch it.

Writer: Debra Smit
Source: Emily Cappo, Thorley Industries