Turning photos into 3D models in a few seconds
AI
B2C
Product Design
Web
Team
Product Manager*1
Product Designer*2 (me)
Software Engineer*4
Skills / My role
User Research
UI Design
UX Design
Company
Penn Spark is a student organization at Penn to design and develop creative products every semester. Penn Place is one of the projects
Challenge / Opportunity
How might we create a user-friendly platform for turning photos into 3D models?
Demo
SquishModel is an AI-driven 3D construction tool that turns photos into 3D models in a few seconds. Users take pictures of objects from different directions, upload the pictures and wait for the surprising 3D models.
Reflection
Don’t be Afraid to Explore New Fields: Few team members had prior experience in designing or developing 3D construction tools, but that didn’t stop us from making it work. Through regular brainstorming sessions and problem-solving, we turned a rough idea into a feasible and functional product.
Cross-functional Collaboration is Essential: Building our product required close collaboration across design and development. Interaction design needed to be both user-friendly and technically feasible, so we worked closely as a team to iterate together and ensure our design decisions were practical and implementable.
Accessibility Brings More Users in: Initially, our product was designed for computers, as building 3D models is more intuitive on a larger screen with a mouse and keyboard. However, before launch, we also created a mobile-friendly version. We realized that most users would discover our product by scanning posters with their phones, so it was crucial they could access it instantly—and transition to desktop later if needed.
janie.zhaoy@gmail.com