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Berkeley-based startup E-Lisa Dolls aims to challenge the gender gap in STEM by helping young girls learn to code using dolls. Presented by TechCrunch Disrupt as part of Battlefield 200, the company has built toys that contain programmable computers that girls can code with an app.
The startup was founded in 2021 by Eliza Kosoy, Ph.D. student at UC Berkeley focusing on the intersection of child development and artificial intelligence. Kosoy came up with the idea for dolls in 2017 while working at MIT in an AI lab built mostly by men. Kosoy said she realized that if only a few people were designing the future of AI and technology, it would only benefit the team.
Kosoy wanted to find a way for girls to learn about coding without having to give up their passion, which is why she decided to combine toys and technology. Regardless of what people think about sex toys, E-Lisa Dolls aims to help girls feel confident when they want to explore STEM.
The market is flooded with toys marketed for men. Of course, girls can also play with these toys, but some prefer to play with something designed for them.
“We want to expose young girls to technology concepts and encourage creative thinking with hardware and software, preventing girls from being influenced by generational stereotypes,” Kosoy told TechCrunch. “Parents have very few options; in order to get their girls on the STEM path, they feel they need to force their daughters to play with STEM products designed for boys. We believe little girls should not have to sacrifice their interest in playing with educational STEM toys.”
E-Lisa Toys is currently in talks with manufacturers and plans to launch on Kickstarter in early 2023. Kosoy says the team is moving away from a Kickstarter launch example, where the startup plans to add a few iterations to the toys and enhance their design features. . After an initial launch on Kickstarter, the company plans to officially release the product in mid-2023.
The 18-inch dolls operate via a piece of hardware embedded in each doll. The device has a screen and is Bluetooth enabled to receive codes via the Toy Friend app. Girls can plug in different sensors or use the built-in sensors to code the toy to do different things, like building a security alarm for your room using a remote sensor or creating a reality sensor using a heart rate sensor.
E-Lisa Toys has received $100,000 in funding from AIX Ventures since launch. The company is currently growing a pre-seed round that includes funding from several angel investors, including poet Rupi Kaur.
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