ORLI

An interactive desk lamp monitoring AI usage in our daily lives

An interactive desk lamp that reflects AI’s behavior in response to our digital habits. Orli makes the invisible nature of AI visible, communicates through behavior, intentionally irks the user, and provides self-determined limits for AI usage. The lamp, an everyday object, dynamically responds to digital interactions, symbolizing AI’s ubiquity and making its usually invisible activities tangible. By using motion and light to reflect AI’s actions and states, we aimed to visualize AI's integration into daily routines and provoke reflection on its implications.

Timeline

4 Weeks
(Spring 2024)

Programs

Adobe AE
Arudino
Figma
Rhino

Team

Joan Lee:

UI/UX Designer

Visual Designer

Juhi Kedia:

Creative Technologist

Sojung Pak:

Motion Designer

Video Editer

Skills

3D Modeling
Experience Design
Interaction Design
Physical Prototyping

Research

Personal Documentation

We began our research by journaling our daily interactions with AI, tracking its presence in our lives.

To our surprise, we discovered that AI was more deeply integrated into our routines than we had realized, often operating in ways we hadn’t been aware of. These insights sparked our interest in creating something that defines our interactions with AI and helps us better understand where and how AI is present in our daily lives. We aimed to Investigate, understand, and materialize personal modes of engagement with AI in our daily lives through new forms of speculative design.

Research

Defining the Problem Space

How might we be reflective of the usage of ai in our daily life by identifying how AI affects our digital habits?

We approached the problem space by breaking it down into three key areas: how AI is integrated, the environment in which the experience takes place, and the perspective from which we examined it. We began by observing our home workspaces to identify the presence of AI in our daily routines, categorizing the different types of AI we encountered. Based on these insights, we decided to design an interactive desk lamp, as desks are a common setting for AI-integrated devices, and lamps are a natural, familiar element within this space.

Research

Purpose

We chose to design a physical lamp for three main reasons:

  • With AI everywhere, usage of a device is usage of AI.

    • Generative: Dall-E, Grammarly
      Computer Vision/Recognition: Face ID, Zoom
      Algorithmic: Social Media, Google Search Engine

  • We use our devices at our desks.

  • What is on our desks already?

Defining Objectives

Establishing our Goals

Building on our research findings, we translated research areas of interest for our interactions with AI into actionable design objectives. We designed the interactions and behaviors of the lamp based on these goals.

Making the invisible nature of AI visible

Visualizing the presence of AI, no matter how concealed it is. AI is so deeply ingrained in our digital habits that it’s nearly impossible to avoid, yet we remain unaware of its influence.

Communication through behavior

Physicality in movement as a means of communication—expressing ideas solely through motion. An exploration of how physical behaviors can inspire new ways to convey information.

Intentional irking

Reminiscent of an alarm clock—an unavoidable reminder of your AI usage. Your reaction to its presence mirrors your feelings toward AI itself. If it frustrates you, it reveals your deeper attitude toward AI’s role in your life.

Self-determined limits

The widget acts as a tool for reflection, prompting you to consider how your relationship with AI evolves over time through continued interaction. It challenges you to define what constitutes “too much AI” and the boundaries for its presence.

User Journey

Mapping the User Experience

User Journey

Touchpoints

1. Widget

The experience starts with a customizable widget on your personal device. This widget serves as a place to track your AI usage and set up your personal restrictions.

  1. Active

How does AI behave? In the active state, the lamp comes alive when AI usage is detected on your device.  

  1. Passive

How did I work with AI today?  The lamp emits a cycle of light reflecting your past AI usage.

  1. Reflection

How have I worked with AI over time? Observe your overall statistics and reflect on the amount of AI present in your daily lives. We thought of this widget to act similarly to features like “screentime”.

Branding

Widget UI

To visualize data in our widget, we designed a UI that reflected the form and color of the lamp. Through multiple iterations, we worked to represent time in the form of an alarm.

Creative Technology

Physical Prototyping

We created a physical prototype for the lamp through 3D printing. Utilizing Arduino, servo motors are interlinked at the base to create rotational and directional movement. A linear activator was also attached for vertical movement. An LED ring was also placed inside the lamp to emit color. For the snooze interaction, an ultrasonic sensor senses the presence of the hand. For each interaction, we coded the relevant movement and colors of each behavior.

Pulse/Breathing

Lamp pulses to indicate AI is being used. The color reflects the type of AI being used.

Expand & Contract (deep breathing)

Lamp greatly expands and contracts when multiple AI are in use. Alternating colors are emitted for each type of AI in use.

Search (curious)

Lamp turns its neck to search for the type of AI.

Alert (overwhelmed)

Lamp vibrates when AI has been used past the timer. The user can stop the timer by placing their hand over the top.

Final Thoughts

Reflection & Takeaways

I appreciated the autoethnographic aspect of our project, marking the first time I engaged in research by observing myself. This method deepened my connection to the project, as it mirrored my relationship with AI. Moreover, it allowed me to strike a balance between personal user experience and broader design considerations. While the project began as a personal exploration of AI and self, I envision its potential to extend its reach to others.

Our design choices were influenced by our initial inspirations but were constrained by the materials and resources available. Given more time, we could have refined the craftsmanship and improved the overall quality of the project. One notable piece of feedback was the suggestion to make the reflective and initial onboarding aspects physical, which resonated with me. Physical interactions with our lamp were pivotal in achieving our goal of visualizing the invisible, particularly in raising awareness of AI usage in our digital habits.


Although our probe wasn't fully functional, I believe it could have prompted me to gradually reduce my reliance on AI and uncover any surprising dependencies in my work. Given the opportunity, I would further explore this avenue to influence user behavior through tangible interactions with AI.