ToyPal is taking part in research to understand how personalised audio storytelling may support engagement and shared activity. We believe early findings should be reported clearly, with their limitations—not presented as proof of treatment or clinical benefit.
The initial study
The initial project was a collaboration between the University of East London, Heartoid Ltd and Autnut Centre. It explored the use of AI-supported personalised storytelling among autistic children in a therapist-guided setting.
The research received University of East London ethics approval under reference ETH2425-0273. Heartoid supplied and configured the ToyPal technology and contributed to the research design, implementation, technical support, interpretation and outputs. Autnut Centre implemented the study in Iran.
ToyPal's internal study summary records:
- 32 autistic participants;
- 12 therapist-guided sessions; and
- a human-in-the-loop approach in which practitioners supported the sessions.
What was observed
Within the observed sample, the study summary records directional changes of:
- 25.5% higher engagement;
- 25.9% higher emotional connection;
- 50.8% higher social behaviours; and
- 42.4% higher behavioural generalisation.
Important: These figures describe changes recorded within this preliminary sample. They have not been independently replicated. The study does not establish that ToyPal treats autism or causes clinical improvement, and ToyPal is not a medical device.
Research output
The paper “AI-Enabled Personalised Storytelling for Autism: A Data-Driven Longitudinal Study of Behavioural Outcomes” has been accepted for publication at ISADES. The IEEE electronic copyright process has been completed. A further paper is in preparation.
Publication details and a link to the final paper will be added here when the permanent published record is available.
What comes next
Heartoid and UEL are exploring a future UK study. Initial discussions include colleagues from UEL's RIX Inclusive Research Institute and NHS practitioners. Any future study remains subject to funding, institutional approvals, ethics approval and a final research protocol.
This is why we describe RIX and NHS involvement as early discussions, rather than confirmed partnership or endorsement.
Our commitment to responsible communication
We will distinguish preliminary findings from established evidence, publish important limitations alongside results, and update this page when peer-reviewed outputs or confirmed future studies become publicly available.
For questions about ToyPal research, contact support@toypal.ai.
Email support@toypal.ai.