Why we chose animation and an AI voice for Abby's Labs. Abby is real. So is the curiosity. Here is why we deliberately keep some things private, and what that has to do with your digital footprint.
We've had quite a few people ask why Abby appears as an animated character on Abby's Labs, and why we don't use her real voice.
The answer is actually pretty simple.
Abby is real.
The curiosity, ideas, questions and personality behind Abby's Labs are very real too.
But from the beginning, we made a deliberate decision that creating something for kids shouldn't require Abby to give up her own privacy in the process.
The internet has a very long memory.
Photos, videos and voices shared publicly today can potentially remain online for years, long after a child has grown up and changed their mind about how much of themselves they want the world to see.
So Abby's animated character gives her the best of both worlds.
She can help create, explore, learn, ask questions and build Abby's Labs, while still getting to be a normal kid away from the website.
## What about Abby's voice?
We made the same decision with Abby's voice.
Rather than building a permanent public digital identity around a child, Abby's Labs uses an AI-generated voice for the animated Abby character.
It means Abby can be involved in creating what you see on Abby's Labs without having to publish recordings of her real voice across the internet.
## Growing up should still come with choices
One of the most important reasons we do this is that Abby is still a child.
As she gets older, what she chooses to share publicly should increasingly become her decision.
The internet Abby inherits as an adult shouldn't already contain thousands of videos, photographs and voice recordings simply because she started creating something when she was 11.
Animation gives her time to make those decisions herself.
## Technology can protect privacy too
We often hear about the risks technology can create.
But technology can also help solve problems.
Animation and AI allow Abby to create an educational platform, tell stories, explore interesting places and share ideas with other kids while keeping much of her private life private.
We think that's a pretty useful example of technology being used responsibly.
And ultimately, Abby's Labs was never supposed to be about making Abby famous.
It was created to make learning more interesting.
To encourage kids to ask questions.
To explore how the world works.
And hopefully to make learning feel a little more like an adventure.
Abby is real.
The curiosity is real.
The adventures are real.
We've simply chosen to keep some things private.
And we think that's a pretty good trade-off.