Living Laboratories
Where AI comes alive.
A family of small, single-purpose bots — each one designed to do one job well, the way a thoughtful human friend would.
Hi. I'm Kevin Burton.
I'm building bots that actually care.
The world has more reminder apps than ever, and we forget more than ever. Most apps ping you once, shrug if you miss it, and never check in again. They don't know you. They don't escalate when something matters. They don't feel like they care — because they don't.
I wanted something different. A small, focused bot that works the way a worried friend would. Gentle nudge at first. A bit bumpier if you don't answer. Eventually, real concern. And if you really stop answering — the bot reaches out to someone who knows you. That's how humans look after each other. That's how this works.
No giant AI. No data leaving your phone. No mailing list. Just a small, deterministic helper that learns your rhythm and shows up when it matters.
— Kevin Burton, Ontario, Canada
The First of the Family
DoNotLetMeForgetBot
Set a reminder by simply telling the bot what you want to remember. As the time approaches, gentle nudges arrive — and grow more concerned if you don't respond. You can clear it with a single word: Done. If reminders go fully unanswered, the bot will (with your permission) reach out to a contact you trust to check on you. The full escalation is voice-modulated too — the bot's tone literally changes as urgency rises.
a conversation
How it works, in 30 seconds.
Watch a real conversation play out — gentle reminder → no response → quiet escalation → welfare-check warning → resolution.
⏰ Hey Kevin, gentle nudge — pick up Mom's prescription (in ~30 min). You asked me to remind you! Hear it
⏰ Kevin, this one's been waiting a while: pick up Mom's prescription (in ~5 min). Still on for it? Hear it
⏰ I'm getting concerned now, Kevin. Pick up Mom's prescription (OVERDUE by 12 min) — you haven't checked in. Hear it
⏰ Kevin, I'm worried. Pick up Mom's prescription is OVERDUE by 25 min — please respond. Reply 'Done' to clear this. Hear it
⏰ Kevin, I haven't heard from you and pick up Mom's prescription is OVERDUE by 40 min. If I don't hear from you soon, I'll be reaching out to your contact to check on you. Reply 'Done' to cancel. Hear it
Listen to all four in sequence — the voice itself escalates. The reminder you hear tells you how urgent it is, even before you read the words.
The Family, Growing.
Each bot has one job, done well. No bloat, no chatbot-trying-to-be-everything. Coming next:
ReplaceBeforeBot
Knows when things wear out — before they fail. Cars, appliances, filters, life.
PlannedServiceBot
Closes the loop between owner, item, and the people who maintain it.
TimeAwareBot
Knows where you are, where you need to be, and what's between them.
DeficitAwareBot
Notices what's missing before you do.
More in design. Each bot is small. Each bot does one thing. The family adds up to something bigger than any single one of them.
Found a snag? Got an idea?
Living Laboratories is exactly what it sounds like — a place where these bots come alive in the wild, with real people, doing real things. Your feedback is what shapes the next version.
Send a quick note to hello@livinglaboratories.org — or, if you're already chatting with DoNotLetMeForgetBot, just type /suggest your idea and it'll come straight to me.