Meet YourGremlin
Where trash becomes treasure. Turn litter cleanup into a mystical adventure.
About Gremlin
Gremlin is a mobile application that transforms environmental cleanup into an enchanted game. Users photograph street litter, receive instant AI-powered analysis identifying trash types and food waste, and nurture a mystical virtual gremlin that grows as they contribute to community cleanup efforts.
Key Features: AI-powered litter identification, virtual pet gamification, community litter mapping, social features with friends, and real-time impact tracking.
Research & Insights
Key findings that informed our solution
Pieces of litter across U.S. roadways and waterways
Items per person. Pick up yours today!
Of people believe litter is a problem in their community
Meet Our User
Alex Chen
21 • NYU Junior • Environmental Studies Major
"I walk past trash on my way to class every day and it grosses me out, but I never actually pick it up. Why would I?"
Pain Point:
Disgusted by street litter but lacks incentive to take action
Root Cause:
No immediate reward or gratification for picking up trash
The Gap: Cares about the environment academically, but daily actions don't reflect values due to lack of engaging incentive system.
The Problem
Overwhelming Scale
With 52 million tonnes of plastic waste entering the environment annually and 1 billion meals wasted daily, the problem feels too big for individuals to tackle.
Lack of Engagement
Only 14% of people will pick up litter they see on the street, and 63% of littering is accidental or unintentional. Even when people drop trash by mistake, most won't go back to retrieve it—creating a cycle of neglect.
The Solution
Gremlin is like Pokémon for litter. From spotting to cleaning, Gremlin turns every small act into progress. Catch mischievous gremlins by cleaning up trash through the Capture Mode camera, or feed your existing gremlin by spotting litter you can't pick up using Feed Mode. Every interaction helps your gremlin grow — making it an encouraging, playful way to build real environmental impact step by step.
AI Camera
Feed & Capture modes for spotting litter
Dashboard
Track your gremlin's growth and stats
Litter Map
See community-reported litter spots
Community
Connect with friends and compete
User Journey
Complete flow from onboarding to impact
AI Camera
Feed & Capture modes for spotting litter
Reflection & Impact
Through this project, we learned that gamification is key to sustained environmental action. By combining AI technology with psychological motivators and mystical aesthetics, we created a system where every photo contributes to real-world impact—building a database of litter patterns that drives policy decisions and community change.
Real-World Impact
1 Photo Captured
= 1 Trash Pickup Recorded
Feeding Your Gremlin
= Spotting Food Waste
Every action in the game creates real environmental data
Beta User Feedback
Beta users tested the app
Love the concept and would use it
Scanned litter 3+ times in first week
Democratize environmental monitoring
Drive data-informed decisions
Create environmental stewards
References
[1] Keep America Beautiful. (2021). 2020 National Litter Study. https://kab.org/litter/litter-study/
[2] Safe Food Advocacy. (2024). Plastic Overshoot Day 2024. https://www.safefoodadvocacy.eu/
[3] UN Environment Programme. (2024). World Squanders Over 1 Billion Meals a Day. https://www.unep.org/
[4] Beetroot. (2024). Green and Sustainable Apps: Examples and Best Practices. https://beetroot.co/
Ready to Meet Your Gremlin?
Join the movement to gamify environmental action. Pick up your 152 pieces of litter and watch your mystical companion thrive!
Get Started