Maybe you have been mildly annoyed by charity collectors who have confronted you on the street to collect money for their cause. Enter DON-8r. This small robot is so cute you want to hug it. DON-8r is maybe the next generation of charity collectors: It is not intruding your personal space or being in your face. Rather, Don-8R seems to gather the crowds.
DON-8r runs on donations: By plopping a coin down its back slit, it thanks you and does a little dance by driving around. After 30 seconds, it stops.
However, the real question is: How does DON-8r measure up against a human charity collector?
The charity organization Folkekirkens Nødhjælp decided to put it to a test: DON-8r and a human charity worker battled in the streets of Aarhus. Each got 6 minutes to collect as much money as possible for the famine-stricken Horn of Africa.
The result: While the human collector managed to raise 295 kr and a 25 øre-stamp, DON-8r got a respectable 185 kr. Also, the human collector was “lucky” to cash in a 100 kr-note from somebody he knew.
DON-8r is designed by product designer Tim Pryde at University of Dundee as his final project. You can come see the cute robot at the NEXT2011 and donate to Folkekirkens Nødhjælp.