This paper presents the preliminary results where an experimental prototype, the interactive soft toy called Octopus X-8, is used with three children with neurodevelopmental disorders in play activities involving turn-taking. This competence is fundamental for regulating social interactions and it is often impaired in those types of disorders. The pilot experiment aims to investigate if X-8 can be used as an engaging toy usable to train turn-taking skills. The toy is able to distinguish between two users and can therefore produce rewarding sensory feedback, such as coloured lights and sounds, when the turn-taking rules are respected. Preliminary results seem to show that X-8 can indeed be used as a supporting tool to improve this important social competence.

In this workshop we will present, through live demos, novel technological tools such as interactive "smart" toys for social play and AI-based monitoring tools, developed to support the early treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We will discuss the potential of such devices, describing also our promising results with ASD children. The goal of the workshop is to involve the specialist audience in the co-design of some potential aspects of the overall system. In particular, we are interested in collecting feedback and proposals on possible further uses of the system such as additional play activities to stimulate social behaviour; improvements of the monitoring tools; potential use of the tools in developmental disorders other than ASD.

As human beings, we are designed to be empathic, to connect emotionally with each other and to share affection. This is part of our nature and makes us feel like part of a group. New forms of technology enable us to share, in real time, a variety of data. Some data, such as those on heart rate, can relate to our affective state. This research focuses on asking if technology-mediated interactions might help us to feel more emotionally engaged and intimately connected, especially when sensorial feedback about our inner state is provided. In this context, we present an interactive device that provides two users, through pulsing lights, with feedback on their heartbeats and the related level of synchrony (fig. 1). The prototype could be used to assess the effectiveness of this technology and to improve the feeling of connectedness and intimacy between two users.

Transitional Wearable Companion (TWC) is a novel design concept, implemented as an interactive, smart, soft toy, which aims to stimulate curiosity and encourage social engagement in kids with special needs, during play activities with their caregivers. We propose the TWC as a potential support tool for neurodevelopmental therapists, during early intervention in disorders characterised by impairment in the social area, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The TWC might be helpful to set up sensory-motor games, conceived for encouraging and reinforcing critical social competences, pivotal for cognitive development, such as eye-contact, imitation, joint-attention and turn-taking. In this work, we present two working prototypes of TWC called PlusMe and X-8, currently used in pilot experiments with children diagnosed with ASD.