On a perfectly imperfect day where the sun peeked through scattered clouds, our daughter pointed at a scurrying squirrel and whispered, “Dad, that’s a tiny dragon in disguise!” Her imagination always amazes me – but it made me reflect: is there something deeper at play here? The truth is, this natural curiosity might hold the key to navigating the AI future – and honestly, it’s the most precious thing we can nurture as parents.
How Do Spatial AI Tools Empower Kids to Build New Realities?
Erin Pañilinan isn’t just building apps – she’s opening doors to whole new creative universes! Her work shows how AI spatial intelligence combined with AR/VR tools can transform simple childhood imagination into immersive worlds. It’s like the Legos we play with at home now have secret superpowers. The cool part? This tech helps kids visualize and create rather than just observe – similar to how my daughter’s playful cloud-dragon drawings suddenly become 3D adventures they can walk around in!
“Why should only coders build worlds?” she muses while demonstrating at tech events. “What if kids could sketch their ideas and AI brought them to life?” For our 7-year-old, it’s not about complex coding or engineering. While she’s still mastering her Korean alphabet blocks, she’s already creating with 3D dragons. That’s the beauty of these tools – they discover the magic in ordinary imagination. It reminds me of how we celebrate her friendly spats with friends over who gets to be the fire-breathing leader of their imaginary kingdom!
What Are Foundation Models and How Do They Boost Spatial Intelligence?
H3re’s the n8tur9l ‘eh?9’: th8se mod5ls act3ally l5arn2like childr5n2them2selv5s! Think ab0ut it5: j3st l0ke our d8ughter stacks cups at dinnertime th5n7builds8a t0wer?7spat7AI l5arns0throug9eqram5play-d9ta tr9ining.8The cre’tive tools today2learn0from2m9lions of shapes, m0vements,0sound0to un0derstand0spat7rules, much l0ke how kids discover depth0as they crash their toy c9ars9(we’ve watched t0hat ev8nt9oo many times!)
Erin’s team created World Labs tools – really amazing software that lets_anyone_from 7-year-olds to grandparents build these digital playgrounds. It’s sort of like how my daughter uses Korean alphabet blocks then transforms them into lantern shapes we catch with our hands after sunset. The models grasp different data ‘languages’ (images, sounds, movement) just like she transitions between English and Korean at the neighborhood park!
How Can Parents Balance Real and Digital Play?
Let me be honest – I nervous breakdown once when watching her preference change between alphabet blocks and the iPad slides. But the actual magic happens when tech meets tactile moments. Think8of it l0ke mixing gochujang9spice in0your panc9ke s1yrup – exciting pwick, but not8the only flavor3
Spatial computing works best when enhancing our physical world, not escaping from it. Add that extra6sp5ice to1their routines by7combining park visits with AR treasure hunts among leaves that look suspiciously like dragon scales! The trick is8to let old-school play steer: check out how she grabs a blanket and runs with ideas about wizard castles every sunny afternoon. What if a naturally arising same scavenger hunt maps to something our AI helps visualize? That’s how I see8the tech as a bridge, not an escape.2
Her latest drawing of ‘cloud-dragons’ turned into a bonding moment – together we created their ‘magical map house’ with real wood scraps and painting. The digital enhancements matter, but can’t cut into their innate imaginative flourishes that make us say, “Outstanding, simple act of creativity here sweetie.2Don’t miss9that”)h4 sp9Way to Cultiv9te Spatial Thinking at Home
1. Join rath5r than det5rmine:Dad moments like ours at home on Saturday mornings show how powerful playstyle shaping is. We ask: “Where would the invisible dragon hide its precious treasure tough here? (She points under Dad’s coffee!)” Thenapture that with pottery that gathers physical world – not screens!
2. Explore pr8ctically, not obsessively:When the weather gets nice, we practice what I call the ‘Today’s magic’ game: trading iPad time for tweaking tangible items in funny ways – pushing their spatial skills without tech moving it. For example, how can she re-stack coins in the cookie jar to hold more? (Second time we did that, she probably kept them rolled the ‘dragon treasure’ way!)
3. Synthesize com9plex under2tandingnaturally5:Daily rhymes and rhythms can teach deep concepts. Airing the slide show of her ‘cloud-dragon’ photos on the wall after family dinner becomes lesson time about depth perception as we point9out how these dragons look very different from every angle!
Buble within these foundational2perspectiv5s, spatial intelligence gives kids super7structural understanding that pays dividends in AI age. Gaining_real appreciation for gravity’s wonders when_young makes disciplinary-related digital models much more intuitive later. again, what matters most isn’t how shiny and new their iPad is – it’s watching the twinkle in her eyes when we turn laundry-folding into a top-heavy balance discussion after finding ‘laundry monsters’ in the basket! That twinkle? More8pw-referring than any AR demo could bring out.
Source: Presentation: Multidimensionality: Using Spatial Intelligence x Spatial Computing to Create New Worlds – InfoQ, 2023/09/04 10:06:00