Co-Founder; Masters Student
The Innovation Shop; OCAD University

Experiential | Prodigy AI
Presentation | Building a Better World Through Science Fiction

Maheen is co-founder of The Innovation Shop, a design consultancy in Toronto. She specializes in strategic foresight, systemic design, transition design, and narrative design. She is completing a Masters of Design in Strategic Foresight and Innovation from OCAD University, and has an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration from York University. Her thesis explores the intersection of civilizational foresight, transition design, and science fiction. A staunch believer that language is a critical medium of design and that foresight should be ambient, Maheen is a science fiction writer. In her previous life, she was a marketing executive who worked with multi-nationals, startups, and scale-ups to build brand equity.

Join us as we unveil the next generation of AI companions. At Gepetto Inc., we have spent the past 10 years developing a revolutionary toy that is more human than human. It walks, it talks, it feels, and it plays. Prodigy will transform your child’s life.

‘Prodigy’ is designed to examine the themes of artificial intelligence and the inevitable complexities that arise from the relationships between humans and anthropomorphized devices. Though most depictions of AI are dystopian, there are more nuanced and complex plausibilities that could emerge–ones that do not involve destruction but will challenge what it means to be human. How will we reconcile contrasting notions of ‘human’ and how will our decisions impact our lives? Are we prepared for this uncertain future? This 20-minute experiential future will be followed by a group discussion to critically examine the implication of such a future.

‘Building a Better World Through Science Fiction’ is an exploration of why science fiction literature does not prescribe models of change that inform social innovation and civilizational foresight.