Hi there! I’m Dr. Sonia Tiwari - a children’s media researcher exploring the role of characters as facilitators of children’s creative learning experiences. I’m based in the San Francisco Bay Area & love drawing cute characters with unexpected backstories.

My research on ethical design of AI characters for education has been presented at UC Berkeley, Stanford, Harvard, UPenn, National Geographic Society, EveryoneAI, KidsAI, and UNICEF Communities of Practice, among other venues. My research exploring the impact of AI on children’s creativity was awarded Outstanding Design Case by American Educational Research Association.

As the Director of Research at Oki Pie Lab, I lead rapid research and development based on character-themed art workshops. As a research collaborator at Stanford YouthLAB, I explore joyful learning experiences of families of young children in informal environments.

I’m open to design and research collaborations for K-5 children’s media projects.