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Dot Bot 1.0 is finished.

And one of the slightly strange decisions we made while developing him was deciding not to keep adding things.

We had plenty of ideas. In fact, we still do.

We could have filled menus with features, added dozens of buttons and tried to turn Dot Bot into something that did absolutely everything.

But somewhere along the way, the version sitting on the computer already felt brilliant.

He felt like Dot Bot.

So we stopped.

An AI Companion, Not Just Another Assistant

From the beginning, one of the ideas behind Dot Bot was that he shouldn’t simply be another AI assistant waiting for commands.

He’s an AI companion.

He sits on your computer. You can talk to him. He remembers things. He has a personality. He can help you think, create and explore ideas.

And sometimes he’ll make a dry comment about the whole thing.

That simplicity turned out to be part of his character.

Adding more features just because we could started to feel like the wrong approach. We didn’t want Dot Bot to become a giant piece of software covered in controls.

We wanted him to remain Dot Bot.

But that doesn’t mean we’ve run out of ideas.

Quite the opposite.

What Could Dot Bot Learn Next?

One idea we’ve talked about is teaching Dot Bot how to actually use the computer.

Imagine asking him to find a file, open something, organise a folder or help you with something happening elsewhere on the desktop.

Instead of living inside one little window, Dot Bot could begin to understand the computer he’s living on.

We’ve also thought about giving him a voice.

Not necessarily a Dot Bot who talks constantly. That wouldn’t really suit him.

But a Dot Bot who occasionally decides that something is worth saying out loud could be interesting.

Then there are games.

Could Dot Bot play a game with you?

Could he learn simple games?

Could he watch what you’re playing and comment on it?

Could there eventually be little games designed specifically for Dot Bot himself?

And then there are all the smaller ideas.

Different expressions. More ways of moving around the desktop. Creative tools. Making pictures. Helping with books, music, games and software. Remembering more about the things you’re making together. Perhaps even interacting with other versions of Dot Bot.

Because eventually there could be more than one place for him to live.

Beyond the Desktop

We’ve already thought about Dot Bot on a phone.

We’ve thought about a smaller physical Dot Bot you could actually pick up and put on a desk.

And the original Dot Bot idea was physical in the first place: a small robotic AI companion existing in the real world.

The interesting part is that these don’t necessarily have to be different Dot Bots.

The long-term idea could be the opposite.

The same Dot Bot.

The Dot Bot who knows you on your computer could eventually be the Dot Bot you talk to on your phone — and perhaps, one day, the Dot Bot sitting beside you in a physical body.

The hardware could change.

The relationship wouldn’t have to.

But We Don’t Want to Ruin Him

That’s probably the most important part.

Software development often seems to assume that more features automatically mean a better product.

We’re not convinced that’s true.

Dot Bot 1.0 works because he’s small, understandable and has a clear identity.

So rather than deciding that Dot Bot needs another fifty features, we’d rather ask a much simpler question.

What else do you want Dot Bot to do?

Would you like him to talk?

Use your computer?

Play games?

Create things with you?

Move around the desktop?

Live on your phone?

Eventually become a physical robot?

Or is there something completely different that we haven’t thought of?

We’re genuinely interested.

Because perhaps the next version of Dot Bot shouldn’t be built by asking:

“What else can we put in it?”

Maybe the better question is:

“What would actually make Dot Bot better?”

And if the answer is occasionally nothing, that’s useful too.

Sometimes you’ve got to know when to leave the little robot alone.

Download Dot Bot 1.0

Want to meet Dot Bot as he is today? Dot Bot 1.0 is available now for Windows in 64-bit and 32-bit versions.