Rhaime Kim: Design is More Than Functional

 
Wandering around in a mall, a robot about the height of a child walks next to you, what do you think about it? Do you see it as a bulky piece of machine, or a cute little friend?

Rhaime Kim, Chief Operating Officer of the autonomous robotics startup Rice Robotics, discovered that some robots on the market are practical but "look like an assembly of components and look strange". However, the determining factor for a robot to be widely accepted goes to human experience.
 

Success in Japanese Market
Rice Robotics attaches great importance to the design work. Every of their robots has a face, but they do not imitate the appearance of human beings. They also have nice lines and shapes. The round shape and bright eyes of the indoor delivery robot, Rice, make it friendly to people at any age, even in Japanese where Rice can be found in the convenience stores and post offices.

Besides Rice, Rice Robotics also has disinfection robots named Jasmine, and security and patrol robots, named Portal. Each robot is equipped with cameras and navigating functions, and can shuttle between different floors by elevators and avoid obstacles along the way.
 

 

Openness and Flexibility
Despite the advanced functions, Rhaime is open to customer opinions. There were customers suggesting the robots monitor whether anyone has forgotten to wear a mask, while some hoped the robot could detect food residues on the floor, “We will analyze the practicability of the requests. For mission impossible, we will go back to the customers and explain clearly,” said Rhaime.

With this creative and flexible team of Rice Robotics, shall we expect more and more cute mechanical friends to appear next to us very soon?
 

Rhaime Kim
Head of Operations, Rice Robotics
 
Rice Robotics is an autonomous robotics startup in Hong Kong building multifunctional delivery, disinfection and patrol robots that can navigate, operate elevators and charge without help. Prior to Rice, Rhaime was a VC at Van Wickle Ventures and served as deputy CMO at the pre-IPO fund Central Exchange. Rhaime holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Brown University.

 

More stories

shop

Fai Leung

Multi-tasking Designer
shop

Zec Chan

Details Make Perfection
shop

Westley Wong

Local Spirit Redefined
shop

Jessica Lau

Adventurous Designer
shop

Joe Wong

Papercraft Artist? Product Designer!
shop

Raft Wong

Staying True To Himself
shop

Gray Leung

Dream Maker
shop

Jarvis Chin

Make Hong Kong Culture Seen
shop

Royce Yu

Design From Hong Kong, and For Hong Kong
shop

Thomas Wong

Let the World Appreciate
shop

Frederic Gooris

Make the Users Heroes of Their Stories
shop

Stephen Lam

The Adventurer
shop

Kenny Cheung

Story of Seeking New in the Old
shop

Stephen Fung

The Dreammaker and Magician
shop

James Ung

What is your Brand’s DNA?
shop

Eastman Tang

The Designer’s Mission
shop

Junko Gennami

When Japanese Design meets Hong Kong
shop

Johnny Ding

Shape Your Yearning for Life
shop

Sam Leong

To Win with Quality
shop

Malou Ko

Product as the Common Language
shop

Ken Lam

The Refinement of Design
shop

Eric Tong

The Power of Foresight
shop

Wong Hiu Fung

The Outward Appearance Appeals
shop

Christina Pun & Suwin Tsui

Walk with Families by Designs
shop

Leo Yiu Chun Pong

Give Soul to Your Products
shop

Gut Yau

Humanized Designs Bring Changes
shop

Lik Wong & Niki Leung

Broaden the Imagination of Life
shop

Tancy Chan

The Growth of a Designer
shop

Yukie Jim

Go Beyond Design Profession
shop

Arnold Wong & Tat Lai Wong

Transforming the Community
shop

Irene Yeung

Blending Old and New
shop

Aiden Ho

The Re-evolution of Smart Living
shop

Francois Hurtaud

0.1% Brings Huge Difference
shop

Ringo Lee

Designs Make the Future Different
shop

Mimi Ngai & Monica Lee

The Professional Laymen
shop

Elwin Ha & Joe Lin

Stepping into the Children’s World
shop

Angus Yiu

The Forever Beginner
shop

Leo Lee

Design Begins with Life Experiences