This robot is HELPING sick children in attending school.
• Norwegian company No Isolation developed the AV1 robot for children undergoing long-term treatment or struggling with mental health issues.
• The robot serves as a child’s eyes, ears, and voice, helping them stay connected with their classmates.
• The robot can rotate 360 degrees and is equipped with a camera, microphone, and speaker.
• Students can control the robot remotely using an app with a unique password.
• The app allows students to interact with teachers or classmates, and select emojis displayed in the robot’s eyes.
• There are 3,000 active AV1 units in 17 countries, mainly in the UK and Germany.
• Schools can rent the AV1 for around 25,342.60 Kenyan Shilling per month or purchase it for 625,117.42 Kenyan Shilling , with an additional service package of 131,781.51 Kenyan Shilling annually.
Robots as Social Bonding Tool
• AV1 robots maintain social bonds, especially for students with medical conditions.
• A 15-year-old student in Warwickshire, England, uses AV1 to maintain social connections.
• Over 19% of students in England were persistently absent from school in 2023/24, 7.8% due to illness alone.
• AV1 was launched before the pandemic, but some schools are using it to help students reintegrate into the classroom environment.
• Chartwell Cancer Trust supplies 25 AV1 robots to children with serious illness.
• Founding trustee Michael Douglas praises the robots for keeping children engaged with their education.
• Administrative challenges and technical infrastructure issues can hinder the use of AV1 in schools or hospitals.
