November 24, 2020
Time Magazine has named the socially-assitive robot tutor ABii one of the 100 best inventions of 2020. Abii is the first product from Van Robotics, a startup founded by former Scazlab postdoc Laura Boccanfuso and employing former PhD student Aditi Ramachandran.
ABii is a desktop-size robot with an accompanying web app that can be utilized with any WiFi-enabled device. The online skills-based lessons, paired with ABii, and her online friends are part of an ecosystem that covers key topics to improve individual academic achievement. Students love learning with ABii and stay more engaged in subjects that might otherwise become tedious or challenging for many students.