Forget stickers and GIFs, a new app called Pixi Garden wants you to send interactive augmented reality characters through iMessage instead.
Pixi Platforms launched the messaging native app today, letting you create and send a “pixi” — an intelligent AR character that comes alive through your friend’s phone camera and reacts to whatever is actually happening around them.
What makes a Pixi different from a sticker or filter?
A pixi is not a static sticker or filter. It runs on an onboard AI brain that lets it behave, react, and stay aware of context. Machine learning sensors watch the environment and listen to what is happening around the recipient.
According to TechCrunch, a virtual cat sent through Pixi might react when a real dog walks by, or respond to your facial expressions in real time. The outlet noted that in a company demo, a stand-up comedy routine ended specifically when the viewer smiled.
At launch, you get 3D characters to play with such as a robot, a cat, and an animated envelope that chases you around the screen, plus simple games like tic-tac-toe and whack-a-mole. The best part is that every bit of processing happens directly on your iPhone, so no data leaves your device.
CEO Mark Drummond, a Siri co-founder, says the idea is to replace what used to be e-cards and physical greeting cards with something built for how people actually communicate now.
Pixi has bigger plans for its fun characters
The company wants to build a marketplace where studios, brands, and independent creators can distribute their own characters, similar to how Roblox built a marketplace for games.
Drummond has even floated bringing in Alice in Wonderland, which is an open IP character. The app is free and currently available for iPhone 11 and newer through the App Store, with Android and other messaging platforms like WhatsApp planned for later.
If this catches on, the humble text bubble might finally get the upgrade it has been missing for decades.