Google Hardware Concept: A Wearable Device for Children and Their Parents

You have just joined Google as a product manager, and your first assignment is to design a wearable device for children. Decide which children and families it serves, what it does, what belongs in the first version, and how you would know it is working. ```hint Two customers A child wears the device, but an adult usually buys it and sets the rules. Decide whose problem comes first, and give the child a reason to keep wearing it once the novelty fades. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Which age range should I target: early grade-school children, preteens or teenagers? The needs and the buyer change sharply across them. - Is the form factor open (watch, band, clip, glasses), and must the device work on its own or can it pair with a parent's phone? - What is the business goal: units sold, adoption of Google services, or strengthening Google's hardware lineup, and is there a price ceiling? - Which markets are we launching in, given that rules on collecting children's data differ by country? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A segmentation by age band and by buyer versus wearer, with a justified choice. - The needs of both the parent and the child, including why a child would keep wearing the device. - A prioritized feature set with a first version that respects battery, cost, durability and child-safety constraints. - How children's data and consent are handled, and how Google's existing products help. - Success metrics with guardrails, including continued wear after the first weeks. ### Follow-up Questions - Parents want constant location; the child sees it as surveillance. How do you design for both? - How would the product change for a 14-year-old compared with a 7-year-old? - What would you measure in the first 90 days to know the device is a success and not a drawer item?