Q. What do you make?
A. HugMatch provides early childhood education content and multi-sensory experiences through mobile apps and interactive toys to help them explore the world around them while they feel connected and have fun. Interactive toys help visually-impaired children develop their sense of hearing and touch is most stimulated for their development. Personalized educational apps, including stories and per-themed games, will help children develop their five senses through reading experiences, under global issues such as Climate Change, and also learn body senses.
Q. Why do you make it?
A. Growing up in South Korea, I witnessed my uncle’s struggles with a disability, The visual interaction designer wanted to find some way to help. Seeing the challenges my uncle had to overcome really pushed me to create something emotionally rich and grounded in meaning. I wanted to create a toys and mobile app that would focus on the things visually-impaired children usually lack, such as the understanding of an object, communications skills, and social interaction with peers. HugMatch encourages these children to make connections and build relationships with one another.
Q. What are your goals with it?
A. HugMatch brings unparalleled storytelling and impactful learning to children with disabilities through innovative technologies and creative content. We hope that the HugMatch story will excite and inspire others to chase their dreams and leave indelible marks on the visually impaired community.
Q. What do you plan on doing at this year’s Maker Faire?
We’ll participate in two areas: a maker booth and a presentation/speaker session. In our booth, we demo your mobile app and brand new VR prototype and speaker session. We’ll share our HugMatch character story, climate change, and global warming issues during the ‘HugMatch Earth: A Digital Sensory Playground’ presentation on Sunday at 2 pm.
