Augmented Human Lab: Enhancing Science Education with Google Cloud

The customer in this case study is the Augmented Human Lab at Auckland Bioengineering Institute. The lab develops human-machine interfaces to enhance life and help people with disabilities. It spearheads the Kiwrious project, a project that deploys digital technology to inspire children with a passion and curiosity for science. The lab's founder, Suranga Nanayakkara, has a vision to create life-enhancing, human-machine interfaces, such as a wearable device that enables the blind to access information about objects by pointing to them. The lab fosters technology as 'a natural extension of our body, mind, and behavior.'

Augmented Human Lab, a research center at Auckland Bioengineering Institute, was faced with the challenge of inspiring curiosity for science in children, particularly those who lacked confidence in science subjects. The lab's founder, Suranga Nanayakkara, wanted to create a fun computer interface that could become an extension of a child's curiosity and imagination. This led to the birth of the Kiwrious project, which aimed to make science playful and exciting by using plug-in sensors that capture environmental phenomena. However, to spread the Kiwrious mission, especially in disadvantaged schools, Suranga needed powerful cloud solutions to free up his small team from mundane tasks such as server maintenance, enable unlimited scaling power, and protect the identity of pupils with world-class cloud security.

Google Cloud provided the necessary solutions to the challenges faced by the Augmented Human Lab. The Kiwrious development team used Google Cloud's intuitive interface and user-friendly documentation to make complex coding tasks involving machine learning (ML) and IoT feel like a fun adventure. The team transitioned to Google Cloud from an on-premises virtual machine setup, seeking greater scalability and faster code deployment. They used Cloud Build for automated deployment to its Terraform architecture, and GKE combined with Cloud Load Balancing's intelligent global resource distribution to enable seamless and affordable scaling. Google Workspace's robust security was instrumental in securing student data, putting the minds of parents, teachers, and administrators at ease about the security of personal data.

• The operational gains from adopting Google Cloud solutions have been significant for the Augmented Human Lab. The time taken to deploy a single software release was reduced from two days to just 10 minutes. The team was also freed up to focus on creative tasks such as building software. The Kiwrious project, still in its beta stage, is set to expand significantly. Through a grant from the New Zealand Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, the lab is preparing to deploy Kiwrious into a nationwide pilot program reaching roughly 5,000 students in early 2021. With Google Cloud's scaling, code deployment, and load balancing tools, the team is confident they will be able to handle the expected increase in demand.

• Saved the development team eight hours per week on operational tasks

• Accelerated ethics approvals through world-class data security

• Enabled a 250-fold increase in platform queries by students