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Hi, Bot

› Events · Popup pilots

Help us pick the first popup.

Before we book a big venue, we're running small, low-cost popup events around Richmond — in library meeting rooms, community halls, and rec centers. Free or nearly free, 10–30 kids, two to four hours, hands-on.

Tell us which ones you'd actually bring your kid to. Tap "I'm interested" on any concept and we'll email you the moment it's scheduled — the ones families want most get booked first.

Build your own event See the flagship event series Full concept catalog (printable) Play the Hi, Bot popup

› Concepts we're testing

18 ideas. Your interest sets the order.

Every one is designed to run cheaply and repeat — reusable kits, student presenters, donated space. No tickets yet; we just want to know what to build first.

  1. Hybrid60 minutes

    AI in 20 Minutes

    "A teen explains what a neural net actually is — using candy-sorting rules — then runs a live image classifier on the kids' own drawings."

    › What kids do
    Sort candy by 'rules' to feel how a model learns, then draw something and watch an AI try to guess it live.
    › Ages
    9–14
    › Presenter
    AI-savvy high-school or college student
    › Materials
    ~$60 — candy/tokens for the sorting demo (consumable), laptop + webcam, free classifier (Teachable Machine).
    › Room
    Projector, tables, webcam-friendly lighting.
  2. Presenter-led90 minutes

    Science Fair Encore

    "Regional science-fair winners re-present their projects — pitched down to an 8–12-year-old crowd."

    › What kids do
    Watch 3–4 short student talks, handle the project boards and props, then vote on the one they'd most want to try themselves.
    › Ages
    Audience 8–12 · presenters 14–18
    › Presenter
    High-school science-fair winners (recruited via local school STEM coordinators)
    › Materials
    ~$0 — presenters bring their existing boards. ~$40 for printed certificates + snacks.
    › Room
    One room, projector optional, 25–30 chairs.
  3. Presenter-led75 minutes

    Cool Math You Never Learned

    "A competition-math teen explains one surprising, practical idea — like why your phone's encryption is just clock arithmetic."

    › What kids do
    Follow a single big idea (modular arithmetic, the pigeonhole principle, or why shuffles aren't random) through a hands-on puzzle they solve in pairs.
    › Ages
    10–14
    › Presenter
    High-school number-theory / math-team student
    › Materials
    ~$30 — printed puzzle sheets, dice, a deck of cards per table. Fully reusable.
    › Room
    Tables for pairs, whiteboard or flip chart.
  4. Hybrid2 hours

    How My Robot Works

    "A FIRST/VEX robotics team brings their competition bot, demos it, and lets kids drive it."

    › What kids do
    See the robot run its routine, learn how it senses-decides-moves, then take turns driving it through a simple course.
    › Ages
    8–14
    › Presenter
    Local FIRST or VEX robotics team (students + mentor)
    › Materials
    ~$0 — team brings the robot. ~$50 for cones/tape to mark a driving course (reusable).
    › Room
    Open floor space ~20×20 ft, a few outlets.
  5. Presenter-led90 minutes

    College Students Build a Game — Live

    "Two college CS students live-code a tiny browser game in 90 minutes while kids shout out the features."

    › What kids do
    Call out what the game should do (a jumping cat? a power-up?), watch it appear on screen, and get the finished game's link to keep playing at home.
    › Ages
    10–16
    › Presenter
    College CS students / coding-club members
    › Materials
    ~$0 — one laptop + projector. Free tools (p5.js / Scratch).
    › Room
    Projector + screen, 25 chairs.
  6. Hands-on build2 hours

    KiwiCo Build Party

    "Everyone builds the same KiwiCo crate in pairs — the lowest-friction way to test a hands-on event."

    › What kids do
    Open a crate, follow the steps with a buddy, and walk out with a finished build (catapult, arcade, automaton).
    › Ages
    8–12
    › Presenter
    1–2 Hi, Bot facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$250 — 8–10 Tinker/Eureka crates (mostly consumable; tools reusable).
    › Room
    Tables seating 16–20, trash + recycling.
  7. Hands-on build2 hours

    micro:bit Mission

    "Program a wearable step-counter or a two-player reaction game on a real micro:bit."

    › What kids do
    Snap a micro:bit to a battery, drag-and-drop code in the browser, and flash it to build a working gadget they test against a friend.
    › Ages
    10–16
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$200 — class set of ~15 BBC micro:bits + batteries. Fully reusable across every future event.
    › Room
    Tables + laptops/Chromebooks (or library computers), WiFi.
  8. Hands-on build2.5 hours

    Cardboard Automata & Simple Machines

    "Build a hand-cranked moving sculpture out of cardboard, dowels, and cams."

    › What kids do
    Design a character, build the cam mechanism that makes it bob/spin, and crank it to life.
    › Ages
    8–13
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$80 — cardboard, dowels, hot glue, found materials (consumable). Glue guns reusable.
    › Room
    Tables, outlets for glue guns, mess-tolerant floor.
  9. Hands-on build90 minutes

    Paper Circuits & LED Art

    "Make a greeting card or poster that genuinely lights up — no soldering."

    › What kids do
    Lay copper-tape circuits, add LEDs and a coin-cell battery, and design art around their working light.
    › Ages
    8–12
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$100 — copper tape, LEDs, coin cells, cardstock (consumable).
    › Room
    Tables, good lighting. No power tools needed.
  10. Hands-on build60 minutes

    Spaghetti–Marshmallow Engineering Challenge

    "Teams race to build the tallest free-standing tower that survives a marshmallow on top."

    › What kids do
    Work in teams against the clock, test and rebuild, and measure the survivors in a final showdown.
    › Ages
    8–16
    › Presenter
    1 facilitator
    › Materials
    ~$40 — spaghetti, marshmallows, tape, string (consumable). The cheapest possible first probe.
    › Room
    Any room with tables. Zero tech.
  11. Hands-on build2 hours

    Stop-Motion Animation Lab

    "Make a 10-second animated film with clay characters and a phone."

    › What kids do
    Sculpt characters, shoot frame-by-frame with a free app, and screen everyone's films at the end.
    › Ages
    9–14
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$60 — modeling clay + mini tripods (tripods reusable). Free stop-motion app on tablets/phones.
    › Room
    Tables, steady lighting, a screen for the final showing.
  12. Hands-on build90 minutes

    Little Bots: Draw-Bots & Brush-Bots

    "Build a tiny vibrating robot that scribbles its own art across the table."

    › What kids do
    Wire a motor to a battery, mount markers, and race or 'art-battle' their bots.
    › Ages
    8–11
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$120 — hobby motors, batteries, markers, cups (motors reusable).
    › Room
    Tables (cover them — markers!), outlets optional.
  13. Hands-on build2 hours

    Scratch Game Jam

    "Ship a playable game in two hours — no materials, infinitely repeatable."

    › What kids do
    Pick a theme, build a game in Scratch, and play each other's creations in a closing arcade.
    › Ages
    9–14
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$0 — library computers or bring-your-own laptops. Free (Scratch).
    › Room
    Computer lab or laptops + WiFi.
  14. Hybrid90 minutes

    AI Art & Prompt Lab

    "Learn to 'talk to' an image model — then critique and remix what it makes."

    › What kids do
    Write and refine prompts on a supervised station, then discuss what the AI got right, wrong, and weird (a real responsible-AI conversation).
    › Ages
    10–16
    › Presenter
    Facilitator (supervised stations)
    › Materials
    ~$40 — printed prompt-craft cards + a few supervised laptops. Image tool on a facilitator account.
    › Room
    Tables + 2–4 facilitator-controlled laptops, projector.
  15. Hybrid2 hours

    Family Build Night

    "Parent-and-kid pairs build one kit together — and the parents leave sold."

    › What kids do
    Team up with their grown-up to build a kit side by side; the parent sees exactly what a Hi, Bot session feels like.
    › Ages
    8–14 + a parent
    › Presenter
    2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$200 — paired kits (reuse the micro:bit or paper-circuit inventory).
    › Room
    Tables seating pairs, room for ~12 families.
  16. Hybrid2.5 hours

    Inventor's Showcase + Open Build

    "Half student presentations, half free-play build stations — tests both formats in one session."

    › What kids do
    Watch a few short student demos, then rotate through open build stations at their own pace.
    › Ages
    8–14
    › Presenter
    Student presenters + 2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$150 — station consumables drawn from existing kit inventory.
    › Room
    One large room or two adjoining; tables + projector.
  17. Hands-on build2 hours

    "Break It to Understand It" Teardown

    "Safely take apart a donated toaster, keyboard, or remote to see what's really inside."

    › What kids do
    Disassemble donated electronics with real (kid-safe) tools, sort the parts, and learn what each component does.
    › Ages
    9–14
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$0–50 — donated dead electronics + a class set of screwdrivers (reusable) + safety glasses.
    › Room
    Tables, safety glasses, a sweep-friendly floor.
  18. Hands-on build90 minutes

    Code + Music

    "Write code that makes beats — coding for the kids who think they hate coding."

    › What kids do
    Build a short looping track in Sonic Pi or Scratch, layer sounds, and play the room their creation.
    › Ages
    10–16
    › Presenter
    1–2 facilitators
    › Materials
    ~$0 — laptops + free software (Sonic Pi / Scratch). A speaker helps (~$30, reusable).
    › Room
    Computer lab or laptops, one decent speaker.