WonderTree: AR games as assistive therapy

Shocking is the report by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics that there are 3,286,630 people with disabilities but only 1 trained psychologist or psychiatrist for every 230,000 of them. Lack of resources, infrastructure, trained individuals and multiple other factors contribute towards this depraved situation. WonderTree aims to solve this problem by providing affordable and durable solution that can be scaled beyond geographical boundaries by presenting WONDERGAMES: An augmented reality gamification solution which engages people on various spectrum of disabilities throughassistive therapy for their therapeutic and cognitive development using the concept of mirror therapy. Currently it uses a PC, a Kinect sensor and a TV but we have started working rigorously to scale it and shift from the depth sensor to an everyday built-in camera in laptops and smart-phones. Once successful, then in 5-10 years, WonderGames can be used in every home and school as mainstream Assistive therapy. 

The main challenges that WonderTree is trying to address with WonderTree are the of social inclusivity, special education and rehabilitation of special children in Pakistan. The issue of exclusion of special people in Pakistan has been highlighted by the UN, WHO, UNICEF and even Pakistani legislation. In 2011 Pakistan even ratified CRPD (Convention on the Rights of Person with Disabilities), but little has happened by way of policies and strategies in line with the CRPD framework. 

One of the reasons why Pakistan has not been able to address this problem efficiently so far lack of infrastructure and human resources. According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics that there are 3,286,630 people with disabilities whereas there are only 330 special schools in Pakistan; and according to British Council report on disabilities in Pakistan 2014, there is only one trained psychologist or psychiatrist for every 230,000 disabled people in Pakistan. Clearly a new methodology of thinking is required to address this challenge and this is exactly what WonderTree aims to do by providing viable and affordable solution. 

The goal of WonderTree is to provide a platform that can aid in developing and educating people with special needs so they can become active members of the society. Since its inception in 2016, WonderTree has helped 2500+ lives in multiple cities of Pakistan. There has also been a deployment in Qatar whereas collaborations with a leading telecommunication company and the Ministry for IT and the Ministry for Special Education for scalability of WonderGames are also in their final phases. 

These games are being made in collaboration with medical institutions as well as several professional psychologists, therapists, special teachers and parents. The reason WonderTree made a platform based on augmented reality is that it gives a completely different and diverse experience. Through research it has been proven that augmented reality greatly increases a special child's motivation, captivation and encouragement, it makes the mundane and painful exercise fun and encouraging. 

There are estimated to be more than 300 Million people facing mental disabilities in the world out of which 80% are living in urban areas, they can be reached and their life can be improved. Thus WonderTree can not only be used nationally but also internationally to solve a global challenge.

The ultimate goal of WonderTree is to develop an effective platform that can be used for education, rehabilitation and therapy of special children hence the creation of WONDERGAMES that comprise of augmented reality based games for Children with special needs through which they will be able to improve their Motor skills, Functional skills and Cognitive skills.

Since WONDERGAMES can be deployed anywhere, from clinics and hospitals to households and special schools and it only utilizes a PC, Kinect sensor and TV screen, there is a 50% to 70% reduction in cost when compared to the conventional methods of rehabilitation, education and development of special children making this technology accessible for the people belonging to all levels of social strata.

It also addresses the problem of having low number of trained psychologists and therapists in Pakistan providing accessible health opportunities to all. Furthermore, it will help develop a database using the research and data from the Augmented reality platform that can be used by researchers and developers to further advance the platform and develop more games to address more disabilities. 

WonderTree hopes and aims to make a more inclusive society with equal opportunities for all. No one should face discrimination due to their disabilities.  There are estimated to be more than 300 Million people facing some sort of mental disability in the world out of which 80% are living in Urban areas, they can be reached and their life can be improved. Thus WonderTree can not only be used nationally but also internationally to solve the global challenge faced by people across the world globe, taking the effort to meet the the 3rd, 4th and 10th Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs) of Good health and well-being, Quality Education, Reduced Inequalities, set by UN to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all one step further.

The innovative part of our solution is that we are using AR to gamify motor and cognitive exercise and we are using the concept of mirror therapy in our AR games. 

This works for the children because they can see themselves while playing the games. They are highly engaged and motivated and try harder and harder to win at the games. For them its entertainment and fun but their skills are being developed simultaneously. 

For the parents and institutions this works because; 

1) This solution presents an engaging way the children can be developed. 

2) This solution is affordable and doesn't requires a lot of resources to setup (resources like: therapy room, equipment, trained experts)

3) Since this solution is technology based it can be easily replicated and scaled making it accessible everywhere.

The core technology that we are using right now is AR through a depth sensing camera, right now we are Kinect V2 camera since it is the most readily available and processing intensive camera in the market. 

However we are working intensely on leveraging AI for human pose estimation, gesture recognition and object detection. The aim is shift WonderTree games from depth sensing cameras to normal cameras found in laptops and smart phones. And we are very close to achieving this. 

Once we are able to use cameras from laptop or smartphones we will be able to scale our solution to the masses! And significantly reduce the setup cost.  

We expect WonderTree to address the problem of having low number of trained psychologists, therapists in Pakistan because this platform can be deployed anywhere, from clinics and hospitals to households and special schools. Furthermore, there is a 50% to 70% reduction in cost when compared to the conventional methods of rehabilitation, education and development of special children.

From the research point of view, WonderGames feature an intricate reporting system through which vital data, statistics and the progress of the children playing the games can be accurately measured. This data can be used to determine the success and efficiency of the platform, as well as to further advance the platform and make it better. The data can also be used by researchers to understand various patterns and factors in special children resulting in an overall progress in the field of people with mental disabilities. With proper time, research and capital invested in the methodology and platform that WonderTree is developing, there is huge potential to redefine the way special children are educated throughout the world. 

From this theory of change chart, we can see how the problem is identified and then WonderTree as its solution, the outcomes and the impacts are identified:

WonderTree currently has 2500 monthly active users. WonderGames are now deployed in over 5 cities of Pakistan in 12 hospitals and 6 special schools.  

So the coming 12 months, since we will be shifting Kinect sensor to RGB camera we are aiming to serve at least 20,000 more children (monthly active users).

1 Year Plan: 

• Increase profitability by %100 by increasing sales and CSR partnerships 
• Work with the govt of Pakistan to make the technology common across Pakistan, working in rural and urban schools, hospitals and community centers  
• Grow from a user base of 2000 monthly active users to 10,000 monthly active users 
• spread operations in Oman, UAE and Singapore (since we are already talking about collaborations in these markets)
• Move from Kinect V2 sensor for human body detection to normal webcam using A.I
• Conduct researches and publish them in international medical journals
• Publish case studies and success stories of WonderTree 
• Start working on ECD (Early Childhood Development) for Pakistan 

5 Year Plan: 

• Expand WonderTree to MENA region
• Expand WonderTree into African Region
• Implement WonderTree's ECD curriculum to all of Pakistan 
• Have 800,000 monthly active users for WonderTree
• Have 2,000,000 monthly active users for ECD games

• Guidance 
  • We have been guided very well in Pakistan but in order to scale this product to outside Pakistan we need the right mentors. We also need the right mentors who can help us make this product better that it is right now. We are still looking for these people. 
• Technology isn't mature enough 
  • The technology of Augmented Reality is still not properly mature. Furthermore we are working on using A.I for human pose estimation and human body and gesture detection. This is something that is currently being researched and iterated.
• Clinical Trials
  • In order to make the product authentic we have been told that we require clinical trials. We need guidance, resource and funding for that which we currently do not have.  
• Funding
  • In order to expand operations, make more games, research on the new technology and conduct clinical trials we need more funding. 

• Guidance: 
  • We hope that becoming a part of SOLVE program is going to bring us close to the right people who can guide us in terms of technology and taking this product and company forward.
• Technology isn't mature enough:
  • We are in talks with Google, Microsoft and Facebook the top three companies that are working on human pose estimation and gesture detection. If we are able to interact with the core team which is working on these technologies we should be able to work with them and overcome our limitations and make this work for WonderTree's application.
• Clinical Trials
  • We are hoping to partner up with a medical university which will conduct the clinical trials with us. We are also optimistic that once we get into SOLVE we will be able to get connected to the right institutions that can help us with clinical trials. 
• Funding: 
  • We are already looking for grant and equity funding that will help us grow, scale and make our product better. 

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The team of WonderTree is the main driving force behind its success. 

We have a team of passionate, talented and diverse individuals which make WonderTree a possibility. 

There are two team members missing in this picture: 

Shahmir: He is the Business Developer and Area Representative of WonderTree for the entire North (which includes cities like Peshawar, Islamabad and Lahore).

Shahroz: He is our third game developer. And he has just joined the team.

The main thing that sets us apart from others companies for doing this is our team. Every individual working at WonderTree is extremely talented and passionate about the cause and wants to make a difference. 

The culture that we have created at WonderTree is based on creativity, growth mindset, helping others and taking ownership of the work that we do. 

SPRING Accelerator (DFID, USAID, AUSAID & Nike Foundation)

• Training on human centered design thinking and impact centered business models. 

• Grant of $40,000.

• Mentorship and access to SRPING network that expands globally.

Ignite: National ICT R&D Funds (Semi Govt Grant Organization)

• Grant of $270,000. 

• Access to high-level Govt and corporation contacts

BlackBox Connect (Silicon Valley based Accelerator)

• Accelerator program attended in Silicon Valley covering: Leadership, Mindfulness, Fundraising, Scaling and a lot more.

• Access to global the blackbox network of entrepreneur and investors. 

Zong (China Mobile)

• WonderTree is signing an initiative with Zong through which we will be conducting 100,000 therapy sessions in 36 schools across in Pakistan. Zong is going to be the financial and connectivity partner for this initiative. 

The Nest IO (Google for Startups based Incubator in Karachi)

• Incubation.

• Training and workshops on how to run a startup.

• Access to Pakistan wide network of the IT industry. 

Special Olympics Pakistan

• Access to Pakistan wide network of Special Schools.

• Access to medial, physiotherapy and sports experts for children with special needs for game development.

National Institute of Rehabilitation and Medicine:

• Partners in research and development of WonderGames. 

Our Revenue Model: 

We have a SAAS based revenue model. 

• For Schools:

  • We charge a monthly subscription fee to the special schools where our games are running. The schools in turn charge the parents for the games. 

•  For Hospitals & Therapy Centers:

  • We charge Hospitals and therapy centers per therapy session that they give out to their walk in patients. 

• For Parents (Households):

  • We are working on making WonderGames available for parents for use in houses. The parents are also going to be charged per license per month. 

So far we have been sustaining ourselves through a mixture of: 

• Grants

• Revenue from sales 

• Revenue from Corporation under their CSR initiatives

But as our sales are progressing and we are working on AI to make our technology even cheaper and accessible to everyone. We are confident that within 12 to 24 month's time we will be cashflow positive through our sales and our monthly active users. 

By the end of 2019 we are aiming to have a cashflow of $150,000 in revenue through Corporate CSR initiatives and Sales. 

We are hoping the achieve the following out of the Solve challenge: 

• Mentorship to refine and make sustainable business model in Pakistan and globally

• Guidance, mentorship and access to the right network through which we can conduct clinical trials for authenticating WonderGames

• Connections and mentorship to scale this initiative globally
  • Access to the right investors, organizations who can support us financially (through grant or investment) and help us scale globally

• Connections and network to start selling WonderGames in the US to schools, hospitals and parent

• Connections on bringing more people on board our advisory board   

Clinical Research

These are some of the organizations that we would like to partner up with:

Microsoft:

So far on the hardware and software end we have been using solely microsoft's technology. We want to partner with them for support from their development team for improving our existing platform and building more on it. 

We would also prefer if Microsoft can support us via Azure credits and highlighting us

Facebook:

Facebook is working on its deep learning platfrom called Pytorch. We want to collaborate with Facebook for human body and pose estimation module.

We would also like Facebook's support in terms of facebook credits that we can use to market our product.   

Apple:

Apple has very recently released its ARKit 3 through which our games can be played. Through this technology we can build our games for the Apple tablets and phones and make them available on the apple APP store.

Clinical Research: 

We would like SOLVE to help, or help in getting connected with an organization that can help us in starting, conducting (and financing or helping us arrange finances) for conducting a clinical research on WonderGames. We would also like MIT's help in publishing the research once its done. 

Foundations:

We would like if SOLVE can connect us to foundations that are working on disability, reducing inequality and early childhood education. With the purpose of partnering up with them to receive support for expanding WonderTree's reach and starting operations in other countries and getting grants for doing that. 

Our team will utilize the prize on the following: 

• We will use the prize for R&D, development and deployment of AI for human body tracking and pose estimation. This is going to allow our mirror therapy based AR games to be played through normal camera found in smart phones and laptops instead of requiring a depth sensing camera. This will make our games for children with special needs accessible and affordable. 
• We will also be using AI to make our games more adaptable to every individual child. Since every child with special needs is different and has a different learning pace, the games will be able to learn and adapt according to the child and his/her progress.
• We will also use AI to make a diagnostic tool for diagnosing children with their special needs. Right now diagnosing a child is expensive and majority of the population of the world lacks access to the professionals and facilities for this. But we can change this. 

We would also like to connect with Patrick J. McGovern Foundation for research purposes since what we are doing (using Mirror based AR games for improving cognition and modifying behavior of children with special needs) falls into their domain and we can really use their support. 

We also believe that we are a right fit for Schmidt Futures since we are making the world a better place through the use of technology.

Not Applicable.

Our team will utilize the prize on the following: 

• We will use the prize for R&D, development and deployment of AI for human body tracking and pose estimation. This is going to allow our mirror therapy based AR games to be played through normal camera found in smart phones and laptops instead of requiring a depth sensing camera. This will make our games for children with special needs accessible and affordable. 
• We will also be using AI for making our games more adaptable to every individual child. Since every child with special needs is different and has a different learning pace, the games will be able to learn and adapt according to the child and his/her progress.
• We will also use AI to make a diagnostic tool for diagnosing children with their special needs. Right now diagnosing a child is expensive and majority of the population of the world lacks access to the professionals and facilities for this. But we can change this.