Raul Gutierrez's room at Princeton University wasn't like the other students'. "I had a little library of children's books in my dorm," he says. Now, at the Brooklyn office of Tinybop, the educational children's app firm he founded in 2011, he has a similar library to inspire his colleagues. "When someone is interviewed for a job, the first question we ask is: 'What's your favourite [children's book]?' If somebody doesn't have a quick answer, they're not right for the company."
That passion has brought Gutierrez success. Tinybop's last major release, anatomy-exploration app The Human Body, reached number one on Apple's App Store Education chart in 143 countries and was downloaded more than five million times. In its latest app (pictured), which has the working title Creature Garden, children are tasked with designing their own creatures using animal parts. The success of these creations can then be tested on virtual treadmills to help show children how animals move.
The apps encourage children to use their imaginations just as they would with building blocks. Those in development are deemed to be on the right track when children trialling them start making up their own stories, Gutierrez says: "If it's something that came out of their imagination, that's when we know we've given them enough of a digital playground."
After making their name in the digital world, Tinybop's creations may soon evolve on to paper. "My ulterior motive has always been to create books." Gutierrez says. "We're in talks with several publishers to turn some of the apps into picture books." In the meantime, Tinybop's digital toys find themselves battling a tide of apps that rely on built-in purchases and addictive design. "Everybody can remember their favourite picture books, but how many apps will you remember?"
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
