A playful lab for web, art, and AI

Work in progress

Ric was raised in Las Vegas in the 1970s and now makes his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Over the years he has worked at the intersection of technology and creativity, first as a consultant in Silicon Valley during the 1980s and 90s, where he specialized in database design and systems analysis as industries shifted from mainframes to networked PCs. Later, he turned his skills toward hedge funds, applying early machine learning methods to financial markets, and then to something entirely different: virtual worlds. In the early 2000s, Ric created one of Second Life’s most beloved products, a line of artificially intelligent dogs that were trainable, full of personality, and widely popular in the community.

Today, Ric focuses his energy on projects that bring together service, imagination, and innovation. He volunteers his time building web applications for small nonprofits, helping them run more efficiently with tools tailored to their missions. At the same time, he has returned to his AI Dog idea in a new way—designing and building a mechanical dog that can move, see, and respond to the real world. Using a resin 3D printer and modern sensors, he is exploring how to create a dog that feels as lifelike as possible, with humor, personality, and emotional realism at its heart.

A lifelong science fiction reader with a deep curiosity about physics and astronomy, Ric also shares his home with his wife and their three rescue dogs. For him, technology is most rewarding when it’s used to serve others, spark wonder, and open up new possibilities.