Rafi Haladjian, Co-founder Violet

What prompted your decision to launch the Mir:ror?

After having created the Nabaztag Rabbit, the idea was to now create a means of connecting any object possible. This raised numerous questions such as "What will we be able to connect besides the Rabbit?" The answer being "everything". The Mir:ror allows just that – it is capable of reading RFID microchips attached to any ordinary object and will automatically connect to the Internet, search for relevant information or services and display the results either on your computer screen or at a distance on another server.

What is the practical purpose of this?

You can choose to stick RFID microchips, also known as ‘stamps’, on whichever everyday objects you want, thus allowing you to decide which actions will be triggered. You could decide to put a stamp on your coffee mug so that it would automatically change your status on Facebook, or maybe glue a stamp onto an object which allows it to receive emails, meaning that people can send you contextual information. You will also be able to use the Mir:ror by purchasing objects that are pre-equipped with RFID microchips. This is something that we started about a year ago with children’s book publishers Nathan et Gallimard – which allows you to simply go out and buy a book already containing an RFID microchip that, once shown to your Mir:ror, will trigger the reading of the book out loud.

Why is the device called "Mir:ror"?

We named it the Mir:ror since it is an object whose sole purpose is to reflect, not to create. We also liked the idea of a mirror for its simplicity; it does not require any extras to serve its purpose. The Mir:ror is accompanied by three RFID microchip stamps. We decided on the idea of stamps because, like stamps have always allowed things to travel by mail, ours allow things to travel by Internet. Included as well are two mini Nabaztag Rabbits, each containing an RFID microchip and allowing you to program them however you like. For instance, by placing the mini Rabbit on top of your Mir:ror, you could have it programmed to call your girlfriend on Skype or maybe trigger it to open your favourite playlist on iTunes – it’s up to you to decide.

Will these RFID microchips serve as a means to spy on customers?

Personally, we feel that it is in the best interest of the manufacturer and the distributor to create a level of openness between themselves and the customer – any sort of "black box" type feature would only harm the company and cause panic among their clientele. In the end, it is the user who must say "I do not want my objects sending out information to anyone without my consent, or, if the microchip does so, I wish to be informed as well." At the end of the day, it is the consumer who acts as the sole user and has complete control over what their Mir:ror can do for them.

Organisation

Rafi Haladjian has been part of the great connectivity adventure for more than twenty years, having founded France’s first Internet Service Provider FranceNet in 1994. In 2003, he co-founded the French company Violet, which develops technologies, products and services enabling objects to communicate and become intelligent. Violet produces Nabaztag, the world’s first intelligent, interactive Internet connected Rabbit. With Mir:ror, Violet has created the first consumer-oriented RFID reader.