Max’s robot double helps him achieve exam success
Thursday, January 8th, 2026
“The robot is an extension of you. You’re gazing through (its) eyes into the classroom. It gives you a turn to speak… articulating yourself through the robot’s face.”
When Max’s Hodgkin’s Lymphoma treatment meant that he had to spend significant time away from school, he was helped by the loan of a BubbleBuster AV1, a friendly little robot that could sit at his desk at school when he wasn’t able to be there. It became his eyes, ears and voice in the classroom and, by controlling it remotely through a tablet computer at home or in hospital, he could talk, learn and interact with his friends.
“As a parent it gave me the reassurance that he was still getting his education when he felt up to accessing it,” said Michelle, his mother.
“His friends didn’t need to miss him because they could talk to him through the AV1,” added Mark White, the Head Teacher at Max’s school. “Having lost so much time when he wasn’t here there was a risk of him not being able to do his [exams], but the AV1 helped him bridge any gaps in knowledge.”
A big thank you to Max, his family and his school for allowing us to share his BubbleBuster story. Since the Project started in 2020 we’ve connected over 100 families with schools across the UK, and we look forward to our little loan robots, made by No Isolation, being reused again and again to help many more pupils in the future.
Find out more about our BubbleBusters Project here, and become a regular giver to help us support more children through technology.