Algaegotchi is a project for creating an interaction  with the algae. It is a biophotoreactor combined with different sensors in order to read the multiple needs the living organism has. It reads the material’s  density and its equality throughout the container, the health, temperature of the surroundings and the color of algae. All the sensors are connected to an arduino system. It is connected to an App that visually-represents the needs of the Algaegotchi, and afterwards the user must respond to the requirements of the algae, thus creating an interaction with the “pet”.

This project works as a biophotoreactor with the BPV technology. Biological photovoltaics (BPV) is an energy-generating technology which uses oxygenic photoautotrophic organisms, or fractions thereof, to harvest  light energy and produce electrical power.

Biological photovoltaic devices are a type of biological electrochemical system, or microbial fuel cell, and are sometimes also called photo-microbial fuel cells or “living solar cells”. In a biological photovoltaic system, electrons generated by photolysis of water are transferred to an anode. A relatively high-potential reaction takes place at the cathode, and the resulting potential difference drives current through an external circuit to do useful work. It is hoped that using a living organism (which is capable of self-assembly and self-repair) as the light harvesting material, will make biological photovoltaics a cost-effective alternative to synthetic light-energy-transduction technologies such as silicon-based photovoltaics.