Milo | Devpost

Milo
Esp32 simulator set up

Problem Statement

How might we leverage technology to encourage empathy and support to gently guide individuals—especially children—into deeper, relaxation?

Inspiration

As students ourselves, we hear a lot on how our peers are struggling to stay awake in whereby staying up late has been rooted in our culture as an act of increased productivity and hard work, but leading to many, including ourselves, feeling lethargic throughout the day.

We wanted to move away from the standard tracker application solutions to monitor sleep and instead, utilise empathy and connection to nip the issue of poor sleep at its bud since youths are more likely to commit to something they have an emotional connection to. Drawing forth our childhood experience of hugging plushies/chou chous to sleep, we designed a ‘chou chou’ to bridge the gap between childhood reminiscence and reality, invoking the child in all of us to return to the realm of early and relaxing sleep.

How we built it

Our Solution: Milo, the Smart Sleep Companion A plushie-inspired AI device combining conversational AI, movement sensing, and temperature tracking to promote restful sleep.

Key Features:

1. First item Adorable and kid-friendly design: Utilising a non-invasive, child-friendly design to capture users’ hearts, earning their trust to confide with the AI chatbot of Milo.

2. Movement & Distance Sensor: Detects tossing, turning, or if the user leaves the bed. Triggers conversational prompts or gentle reminders to return to sleep.

3. Infrared temperature sensors: To detect fluctuations in user’s body temperature, providing a surefire way of being aware of whether the user is awake or not before it engages with the user.

4. Online AI Chatbot (Conversational Responses + Speech-to-Text): Engages the user in natural conversation, AI speech-to-text and response systems are mature and can formulate responses based on internet research.

5. Parental Control App (Figma): Parents play a part in their child’s journey to better sleep by setting bedtime schedules (e.g., 10 PM - 7AM) on an application, and are able to view keywords from conversations between Milo and their child.

Challenges we ran into

As newcomers, understanding the fundamentals of microcontrollers and pins took time. We had to familiarise ourselves with hardware.
Initially, we planned to make the physical bear a standalone product, but the limited time and hardware availability made us rethink our mvp.

Relevance and Impact on Target Audience

1. For Children:

Fosters healthier and consistent sleep habits through building companionship with our product to encourage a more relaxed state of mind through confiding and empathy.

2. For Parents:

Promotes peace of mind on their child’s growth through concise and effective passive sleep monitoring of their child.

Conclusion

Milo represents the next step in smart sleep technology—an AI-powered sleep companion that senses, converses, and comforts. By combining movement detection, body temperature monitoring, and responsive AI interaction, Milo ensures users not only fall asleep but stay asleep, achieving better rest and healthier lifestyles.