Build and learn April 6, 2023 # Inspiring ideation: Takeaways from XchangeIdeas 2023 Hazal Mestci Developer Advocate “Have you ever looked around your world and wished something about it was different?” “Have you ever found yourself noticing how products could be just a little bit better with one small change?” If you’ve pondered these questions before, you’re in good company! These are just a few of the thought-provoking prompts that builders, innovators, and entrepreneurs explored together at [**Xchange Ideas 2023**](https://www.xchangepgh.com/events/xchange-ideas). At the ideathon, our team was thrilled to help facilitate explorations of some really cool robotics ideas—from **assistive toys for older adults** to **vertical farming solutions** for monitoring crop health. ## Ideas in action: Bringing together diverse perspectives Whether attendees wanted **feedback to refine their existing ideas** or **develop a new concept from scratch**, people of all backgrounds were encouraged to participate! Diverse perspectives enabled attendees to **imagine unique approaches** to their ideas. An app-builder chatted with real estate developers on space planning, which gave way to a new and refreshed design. And, after speaking with college students on what helps them to relax, a team building assistive robotic toys was able to rethink some design features to help calm users. ## Ideation tips for bringing your ideas to life Through a series of exercises from XchangePgh’s strategic design toolkit (like [this one](https://miro.com/miroverse/profile/maadlabs/)), participants were able thoroughly evaluate different approaches for bringing their ideas to life. Have a great robotics idea? Here are a few tips we learned from working through exercises with attendees that we hope will help focus your thinking: - **Identify the problem** you’re trying to solve (why is it important and why is it urgent to address now?) - **Get into the minds** of the people you want to help (what are their goals and challenges?) - **Create a concept poster** to express your idea in a compelling and concise way - **Make room for different perspectives**, both from others and in your own exploration - **Describe ways to test** your ideas to help identify potential obstacles or key actions ## From concept to reality: Facilitating robotics startup ideas Our team was so excited to help some of the attendees transform their **great robotics startup ideas** from concepts into concrete business and build plans! We helped teams create **concept posters, roadmaps, and go-to-market plans** for robotics ideas and startups they were passionate about building. To spark inspiration, we also fostered **discussions about some challenges people experience in their day-to-day lives** that robotics could help alleviate. And to help folks imagine how they might test robotics ideas quickly, we shared some ways they could use Viam to: - **Rapidly** [**prototype**](https://docs.viam.com/use-cases/configure/) hardware and software setups - Integrate [**computer vision**](https://docs.viam.com/services/vision/) or [**machine learning**](https://docs.viam.com/manage/ml/) to interpret visual data - Incorporate [**motion planning**](https://docs.viam.com/services/motion/) or [**SLAM**](https://docs.viam.com/services/slam/) to control robot movement - Use [**data management**](https://docs.viam.com/services/data/) to capture and analyze data from robots ## Changing the game: Standout projects and ideas We were impressed by the creative thinking and caliber of projects dreamed up by different teams. Here are just a few of the standout ideas that participants explored over the weekend: - A [**robotic toy**](https://fineartmiracles.com/social-robotics-fine-art-miracles-pittsburgh/) **that helps old adults affected by dementia** to calm anxious feelings by changing facial expressions and providing a sense of companionship - A [**vertical farming solution**](https://www.farmscloseby.com/) **in food deserts that utilizes robotic arms** to track moisture levels and to identify crop diseases - A [**no-code platform**](https://getfastai.com/) **for training machine learning models** in minutes and creating model visualizations - An **AI solution to** [**automate writing technical documentation**](http://coderdocs.ai/) **on code** based on GitHub repos - An **airport buddy** that helps you proactively keep track of flights, changes, luggage delivery, and other travel information - An **AI-powered website for** [**writing cover letters**](http://replygen.com/) based on a resume and job description - An **ecotechnology platform** for onboarding companies onto the greenhouse gas exchange protocol to enable transparent carbon footprints and reporting - An **AI-powered app for picking jewelry** based on different metals, shapes, and sizes It was a memorable weekend for participants and our team alike! And it’s just the start of a series of exciting events hosted by XchangePgh. During [Xchange Innovation Week](https://www.xchangepgh.com/events/xchange-innovation), **our CEO, Eliot Horowitz, will be giving a fireside chat on April 26** to share his journey and vision for robotics. If you’ll be around and have any questions for him, [**sign up here**](https://xchangepgh2023.sched.com/event/1KoSg/fireside-chat-with-viam-founder-eliot-horowitz) to attend. ## Have a great robotics idea? Explore it with our experts! We’re laser-focused on empowering the next generation of robotics builders and startups. If you’re interested in building robots that solve interesting problems or are working on robotics solutions for real-world challenges, we’d love to help. Reach out to our team of [**robotics experts**](/content/product/robotics-strategy/index.html) or join our growing [**Discord community**](https://discord.gg/viam) to share and discuss with like-minded folks. No idea is too big or small—all great things start with a spark!