Brendan Boyle: Playing With Purpose [Entire Talk]

TL;DR

Turning play into products is a numbers game: IDEO's Toy Lab starts with roughly 4,000 ideas a year, renders 400, prototypes 50 to 60, sells five or six, and hopes two or three make money. Winning toys come from watching real kids and capturing a behavior, then testing it with rough, low-fidelity prototypes built to learn rather than to validate.

Transcript

(audience applauds) - Shout out to the back row, the people in the back row. Yeah, there they are, okay. (Tina laughs) MSE, okay. - I have to say, it sounds like a lot of fun. Is it fun or is it hard work? Can you give us a snapshot of what life is like working all day, toiling away, designing toys? - So, I'm a toy inventor, that's my profession. I... Read More

Key Insights

• Toy invention at IDEO's Toy Lab is a high-attrition funnel: about 4,000 ideas a year become 400 rendered concepts, 50 or 60 prototypes, five or six sales, and only two or three that make money, according to numbers Bob Sutton ran.
• Failure is built into the process, and Brendan Boyle says he has probably failed more than anyone in the room because most ideas never make it; getting comfortable with a lot of nos is part of the job.
• Great toy ideas start with insights gathered by observation: the team goes into kids' homes, interviews moms and dads, and watches behaviors, acting as what Tom Kelley calls the modern-day anthropologist.
• Capturing a real behavior makes a toy resonate. The Dusty plane toy came from watching three-year-olds pretend to fly, so tilting the toy left or right steers it, turning a natural gesture into play.
• The Toy Lab's core method is high-fidelity thinking with low-fidelity prototyping: build rough and rapid so you can get the idea out to learn from it and improve it, not to validate it.
• Cheap prototypes hide the technology to test the concept first. Dusty was faked with someone behind a curtain steering the toy, and an Elmo dance app was mocked up with a paper iPhone glued to foam core and a live actor.
• A polished prototype culture wastes time, so leaders should be able to squint and see the real product through a rough model; if models must look beautiful before management sees them, teams burn effort on appearance.
• Toys often foreshadow mainstream technology. The $300 Barbie Hello Dreamhouse applied smart-home thinking IDEO had done for billionaires, using behavior recognition rather than programming because no one wants to program.

Questions & Answers

Q: How many ideas does IDEO's Toy Lab turn into actual products?

According to numbers Bob Sutton ran on the group, the Toy Lab generates roughly 4,000 ideas a year, often just a Post-it or small sketch. Of those, about 400 are rendered, 50 or 60 are prototyped, five or six are actually sold, and only two or three end up making money. Boyle describes this as a lot of nos, saying the funnel is mostly ideas that do not make it.

Q: What is high-fidelity thinking with low-fidelity prototyping?

It is a core tenet at IDEO and the d.School: think at a high level but prototype roughly and rapidly. The goal is to get the idea out so you can learn from it and make it better, not to test and validate a finished thing. Boyle warns that if prototypes must look beautiful before management sees them, teams waste time polishing appearances instead of learning, so leaders should be able to squint and see the real product in a rough model.

Q: How did the Dusty toy come from watching kids?

Dusty is a Pixar plane property that is afraid of heights, so it works like an RC car for three-year-olds and stays on the ground rather than flying. The team watched kids pretend to fly by tilting their arms and bodies, then built that behavior in: when the child tilts the toy one way it goes that way, and tilting the other way steers it back. They captured a natural play behavior and turned it into the toy's controls.

Q: How does the Toy Lab prototype ideas cheaply before building real technology?

The team fakes the technology to test concepts. For Dusty, someone hid behind a curtain and steered the toy when the child tilted it, saving prototyping money. For a Sesame Street Elmo dance app, they printed an iPhone at large size, glued it to foam core, cut a hole, and had a live actor behind it perform when someone touched a button, shooting videos back and forth several times before writing any software.

Q: Why does the Toy Lab keep rejected ideas instead of discarding them?

Boyle's team keeps a whole database of everything and revisits prototypes they invested in to see if there is a way to make them work. Some ideas may simply be a little before their time or need reworking to become more relevant. Some concepts can sell right away, while others might take six or seven years. After 20 years of doing this, the lab has many ideas in what they call the vault, hopefully still good enough to sell someday.

Q: Where does the Toy Lab get ideas for new toys?

Ideas come from insights, so the team spends a lot of time going into kids' homes, talking with moms and dads, and interviewing and observing, acting as what Tom Kelley calls the modern-day anthropologist. By watching real behaviors and capturing them in a product, the toy resonates with users. The lab also runs two or three brainstorms a week to keep generating raw ideas, described as the farm where new concepts are grown.

Q: What is Brendan Boyle's relationship to failure as a toy inventor?

Boyle says he has probably failed more than anyone in the room because the Toy Lab's funnel is mostly ideas that do not make it. People say to get comfortable with failure, and he considers himself pretty comfortable with it. He notes that every idea his team has, they think is really cool, but then a lot of other people do not, so the work involves absorbing many nos while still believing in the concepts.

Q: How do toys anticipate technology that adults will use later?

Boyle says his team is lucky because IDEO works across almost every industry, so it can see developments in transportation, consumer products, and health. The team built a $300 Barbie Hello Dreamhouse that used smart technology, applying smart-house thinking IDEO had long done for billionaires. Like the Nest, the house recognizes behavior rather than requiring programming, because no one wants to program. The product appeared on Jimmy Fallon and, being an inventor's product, generated a lot of royalties.

Summary

This video features a conversation with Brendan Boyle, a toy inventor and teacher at the d.School. He discusses the challenges and joys of designing toys and shares insights into the process of bringing ideas to the market. Boyle also highlights the importance of play in innovation and the role of toys in foreshadowing future technology. He also talks about the relationship between toy inventors and manufacturers, the power of brainstorming, and the impact of space and culture on creativity.

Questions & Answers

Q: Is working as a toy inventor fun or hard work?

Being a toy inventor requires a lot of effort, but it is creatively satisfying and enjoyable. It's not just about having fun; it's about being deeply engaged and losing yourself in the process.

Q: What is the process of turning toy ideas into products?

The process involves developing ideas, prototyping them, and pitching them to toy manufacturers. The Toy Lab team at IDEO works on multiple ideas, but only a few make it to the market. Ideas go through various stages of refinement and iteration.

Q: What is the success rate of toy ideas?

The success rate is relatively low. Out of thousands of ideas, only a few end up being sold and making money. However, every idea is considered valuable, and some may be revisited or reworked in the future.

Q: How long does it take to go from idea to product?

The process usually takes about a year, but it can vary depending on the complexity of the idea and other factors. Additionally, the Toy Lab has a vault of ideas that have been developed over the years, which can be revisited and potentially sold later.

Q: How does the brainstorming process work?

Brainstorming at IDEO involves gathering insights and observations, generating lists of ideas, sharing and building on those ideas as a team. It's about divergent thinking, going wide with ideas, being open to ridiculous ones, and allowing the team to collaborate and innovate together.

Q: How do you manage a group of creative people?

The key is to create a culture of trust and collaboration. It's important to foster a safe and supportive environment where everyone's ideas are valued. The team includes individuals with different skills and backgrounds, but the common thread is a passion for innovation and a willingness to learn from each other.

Q: How do toys anticipate future technology?

Toys often incorporate technology that later becomes part of our daily lives. The toy industry is quick to adopt new technologies, and many innovations find their way into toys first. Toys can serve as a foreshadowing of what is to come in terms of technological advancements.

Q: What is the role of space in creativity and innovation?

The physical workspace can greatly influence the way people think and behave. IDEO creates spaces that promote collaboration, provide tools and materials for prototyping, and facilitate different types of play. The design of the space is based on the needs of the individuals and the projects they are working on.

Q: How do you balance play and educational goals in toy design?

Toy manufacturers and inventors strive to find a balance between fun and educational value. Toys can foster non-cognitive skills, encourage creativity, and promote learning, while still being engaging and enjoyable for children.

Q: How do you deal with being stuck creatively?

Taking a break, going for a walk, or engaging in physical activity can help get unstuck. Movement and physical exercise can stimulate creativity and help generate new ideas.

Q: How do you navigate the relationship between toy inventors and manufacturers?

It is a long-term relationship based on trust and collaboration. Toy inventors pitch their ideas to manufacturers who then publish the inventions. The manufacturers are looking for innovative ideas and often rely on external inventors for fresh perspectives. There are intellectual property considerations, but the focus is on building partnerships and ensuring mutual success.

Takeaways

The process of designing toys requires effort, creativity, and resilience. It involves generating a multitude of ideas, prototyping them, and navigating the toy market. Success in toy design comes from finding the right balance between playfulness and educational value. Brainstorming is a valuable tool for generating ideas, but it requires practice and a supportive team environment. The physical space and culture of an organization play important roles in fostering creativity and innovation. Space should be designed to support collaboration, provide the necessary tools, and encourage both individual and team play. Finally, taking breaks, staying physically active, and maintaining a learning mindset are essential for overcoming creative blocks and fostering innovation.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Brendan Boyle is a toy inventor who runs the Toy Lab inside IDEO and teaches at Stanford's d.School. He founded the lab with Fern Mandelbaum after leaving their companies, and though IDEO has 650 people, his dedicated toy team is about 10 folks who invent, build, and pitch ideas.

• The work runs on a steep funnel of roughly 4,000 ideas a year down to 400 rendered, 50 to 60 prototyped, five or six sold, and two or three that make money. The cycle takes about a year, and after 20 years the lab keeps rejected concepts in a vault to revisit or rework later.

• Ideas come from insight-driven observation of real kids and quick, low-fidelity prototypes that hide technology to test concepts cheaply, as with Dusty and a paper Elmo app. Boyle stresses building rough and rapid to learn, citing the $300 Barbie Hello Dreamhouse as toys foreshadowing adult tech.