Abstract

"Lumi" is an AI emotional companion app designed to provide personalized, immersive, and emotionally supportive experiences. The project explores how customizable virtual characters can fulfill the growing emotional and social needs of users through multimodal interaction, intimacy-building systems, and gamified engagement. By combining user interviews, competitive analysis, and iterative prototyping, this thesis investigates how design strategies can strengthen the user’s emotional bond with an AI character. The final product presents a flexible platform where users can create unique AI companions, interact in diverse ways, and develop lasting emotional connections. This work contributes to the field of emotional UX and digital companionship, offering new methods for designing meaningful, long-term AI-human relationships.

Library of Congress Subject Headings

Design--Psychological aspects; Artificial intelligence--Psychological aspects; User interfaces (Computer systems)--Design; Human-computer interaction; Gamification

Publication Date

5-1-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Student Type

Graduate

Degree Name

Visual Communication Design (MFA)

Department, Program, or Center

Design, School of

College

College of Art and Design

Advisor

Mike Strobert

Advisor/Committee Member

Daniel DeLuna

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

Plan Codes

VISCOM-MFA

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