Reshaping the Future of animal-computer interaction through a Framework for Animal User Needs and Agency

FUTUREFAUNA is a landmark research project led by Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas as part of the Animal-Computer Interaction research group, marking the first European Research Council grant ever awarded in the field of animal-computer interaction. Building on a decade of pioneering work designing and studying technologies for animals in homes and zoos, FUTUREFAUNA takes the next major step: creating a rigorous, species-sensitive framework for how interactive technology can be designed, implemented, and adapted to genuinely serve animal users.

What is FUTUREFAUNA?

Animals interact with technology every day, from pets activating remote feeders to zoo animals engaging with enrichment devices. Yet the design of these systems has rarely started from the animal’s perspective. What do animals actually need from technology? What kind of agency can they exercise over it? And how do we build systems that are genuinely useful to them, rather than just observable by us?

FUTUREFAUNA addresses these questions head-on. The project will develop a comprehensive framework for designing, implementing, and adapting technologies specifically for animal users accounting for the unique ways different species perceive and interact with the world. The ultimate vision is a new generation of interactive systems that give animals meaningful control over their environment and open up radically new possibilities for social connection, including across species and between institutions.

“Technology offers a wealth of opportunities for animals — it can help pets keep in touch with their caregivers and each other through video calls, or give zoo animals more direct control over their environment. Imagine the possibilities that open up when we use technologies as new ways to observe how animals make choices, solve problems and navigate social situations. Can we develop technologies, for example, that allow animals to connect with each other between zoos, or to other species, as they would do in the wild, and what do we learn from how they connect? Every species has their own unique way of experiencing and understanding the world with their bodies and senses. To build a workable ‘animal internet’, we must develop species-specific technologies to meet their needs, giving them tools that match their abilities.” — Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas

Research Goals & Objectives

FUTUREFAUNA pursues three interconnected research ambitions:

1. A Framework for Animal User Needs Developing the first systematic methodology for identifying and encoding what animals need from interactive technology — drawing on animal behaviour science, ACI design practice, and ethical frameworks that centre animal agency and wellbeing.

2. Species-Specific Interactive Systems Designing, building, and field-testing a new generation of interactive devices tailored to the sensory and cognitive profiles of specific species. Systems will be deployed with animals in both zoo and domestic settings, generating real-world data on how animals choose to use, adapt to, and benefit from technology.

3. Expanding the Animal Internet Exploring how technology can facilitate new forms of social connection for animals — between individuals, across species, and between institutions such as zoos — in ways that reflect how animals form bonds and communicate in the wild.

Partners & Collaborators

FUTUREFAUNA is conducted in close collaboration with animal behaviour experts, zookeepers, and partner institutions. The project works with Blair Drummond Safari Park and Edinburgh Zoo as partners to deploy and evaluate systems in real-world settings, ensuring research is grounded in genuine animal contexts and welfare considerations.

Funded by the European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant, University of Glasgow.