Beavertable: AI Enabled Ideation for Beaver Inspired Tables

By Tojin T. Eapen

In this article, we outline a methodology for developing design concepts for a new product line of tables inspired by beavers, referred to as "Beavertables." The objective of this project was to generate a collection of visually striking designs that evoke the appearance of beavers, while also connoting a high level of craftsmanship associated with these animals, who are known as nature's master builders. To accomplish this goal, we utilized text-to-image generation models, a form of generative AI that can produce images from text descriptions.

The prompts we used resulted in several novel design concepts demonstrating the feasibility of using text-to-image models early in the idea generation process. The collage below shows some of the Beavertable concept designs we obtained using this method.

These designs can be used as part of a Generative AI Business (GAIB) where a company would display several of these designs on its website, allowing customers to vote for their favorite designs. The top design would then be quickly manufactured and sold as a limited edition product. This approach could be an effective way to generate a high volume of unique and interesting designs while also utilizing the collective tastes and preferences of a large group of people. 

This post is part of a series of articles on the use of generative AI for bioinspired product ideation. The use of AI for product concept generation allows for the quick creation of many potentially novel designs, which could then be evaluated and refined to select the most promising concepts to move to the next stage of the product development process.

To learn how leading Fortune Global 500 companies such as ABB, Bosch, Google, Samsung, and NetApp have used Innomantra's Functional Innovation Methodology to turbocharge their idea management process, schedule a meeting today at calendly.com/innomantra.