The 15 most innovative companies making toys
The Benchmark Series
This post is part of the Benchmark Series, listing the most innovative challenger companies in different traditional markets. These benchmarks are part of the Tuesday in the Design Sprints we do for our enterprise clients.
A huge number of toys today include high-tech and interactive components that keep kids in front of screens. But when it comes to health and educational development, multiple studies have found that kids benefit from things like building with blocks, playing with both hands and looking away from screens for 20 seconds at least every 20 minutes. These 15 companies are working on the toys of the future.
Anki Cozmo, USA
Say hello to Cozmo, a gifted little guy with a mind of his own. He’s a real-life robot like you’ve only seen in movies, with a one-of-a-kind personality that evolves the more you hang out. He’ll nudge you to play and keep you constantly surprised. His powerful technology lets him survey the world, explore it, and make decisions based on his mood.
Bedtime Stories, Austria
Bedtime Stories is a storytelling app for parents — you don’t only read the stories — you tell them in your own words. Each world contains bundles of 5 stories with familiar characters and setting. Randomly generated storylines for every kind of genre provide you with millions of possible stories — surprise twists and crazy interactive ideas guaranteed.
Littlebits, USA
Robotics kits are nothing new. Kits that seamlessly blend basic coding, electronic engineering, and old school maker ingenuity in a package suitable for kids as young as 8, however, are mind blowing. littleBits’ big innovation is taking elements like motors, switches, and LEDs, and placing them within self-contained “bits” that snap together magnetically — it’s basically a next-gen LEGO set, if every brick contained its own smart functionality.
Loog, Uruguay
You probably know all about the developmental benefits your kid gains by learning an instrument — what you don’t know is how to play one yourself. Enter Loog, a Kickstarted and Uruguay Innovation Agency-backed manufacturer of app-enabled, DIY guitars for little people with littler hands.
Mattel, USA
There’s no law saying a 61-year-old company can’t innovate — particularly when it employs all the tools at its disposal as an industry-leading corporation, including R&D, new technology, and savvy acquisitions. Fisher-Price Think & Learn toys help preschoolers develop skills needed for success in the 21st century.
Monstrum, Denmark
Monstrum, a Copenhagen-based playground firm founded by 2 theatrical set designers, comes at it a bit differently. Every feature is custom built from wood to fit within a narrative that’s inspired by the playground’s setting.
Osmo, USA
Osmo is an award-winning game system that will change the way your child interacts with the iPad and iPhone by opening them up to hands-on play. Put your iPad in the Osmo base with the red reflector over the camera — and now it can see what’s in front of it.
Project Bloks, USA
Project Bloks is a research project by Google that aims to create an open hardware platform to help developers, designers, and researchers build the next generation of tangible programming experiences for kids.
Sphero, USA
The original Sphero is a gyro-stabilized ball-within-a-ball; BB-8 builds on that with a head that uses an ingenious configuration to stay on top of the interior ball. It also responds to voice commands and can map rooms like an adorable (and slightly less useful) Roomba. Because it’s controlled by Sphero’s app, new functionality is always only an app update away.
Tegu, Honduras
Plenty of toy companies do right by kids, but how many think beyond that? Tegu’s entire business is built around 2 goals: Encouraging free play by updating arguably the oldest toy in the world — blocks — with magnets, and pursuing profit through sustainable economic development in the company’s Honduran manufacturing hub.
Tiggly, USA
Tiggly was founded on the idea that, while young kids are proven to learn better through tactile experiences, they’re also growing up in a world of ubiquitous screens. The company’s toys interface with apps that engage multiple senses and encourage problem solving in ways that neither toys nor apps can do on their own.
Tinybop, USA
All you need to know about Tinybop’s approach to educational app design can be summed up in this quote from founder Raul Gutierrez: “Google is a terrible interface for a 6-year-old.” Instead, his studio creates richly detailed open worlds that come with no instructions, but powerfully intuitive cause-and-effect sequences.
Toybox, USA
Toybox is the first easy-to-use, one-touch 3D printer for kids to design and print their own toys. Toybox’s one-touch technology and ever-expanding toy catalog mean fun for the whole family. Design your own toys in-app or upload your ideas too for unlimited possibilities.
Toymail, USA
A breakthrough simple way for kids to voice chat with their friends and grownups. The Toymail app lets you to send voice messages to other users, or to Toymail’s WIFI enabled Talkie toys. Kids can send messages right back from their Talkie toy. Create your “Toymail Trusted Circle” to stay in touch with parents, grandparents, and friends.
Wonder Workshop, USA
Dash is a real robot, charged and ready to play out of the box. Responding to voice, navigating objects, dancing, and singing, Dash is the robot you always dreamed of having. Use Wonder, Blockly, and other apps to create new behaviors for Dash — doing more with robotics than ever possible.
Go Weekly brings ideas to life with Strategy and Design Sprints for Enterprises. Creating digital strategies, groundbreaking product concepts and visual prototypes. Working together with companies in Europe and North America to make a leap forward in their industry with new products that match or exceed the benchmarks in this series. Interested to think ahead with us? Get in touch.
