As a new technology company, coming up with the right logo can be tough. Specifically, we’re in the home automation / artificial intelligence space where logos tend to look like this:
There’s nothing wrong with these logos, we actually really like a few of them. That said, we wanted to be different. We wanted to tell a story using a logo that’s both minimal and memorable.
Our goals
When designing our logo, we had a couple constraints in mind:
- It should be purposeful yet simple.
- It should read well at scale.
- It should convey friendly and welcoming while befitting a technology company.
- It should read well on dark and light backgrounds.
- Would be great to include a hidden message.
- It should be memorable and a conversation starter.
There were far more nuanced details we considered as well, but those were the main ones. After much thought and experimentation we decided on a clean, simple dog alongside a Gotham Rounded “JOSH”. Gotham Rounded is friendly yet high-tech, and the dog embodies everything we care about.
Dogs are friendly and inviting yet loyal and trustworthy. Dogs are protectors, part of the family, can be taught fun tricks, and comfort you when needed. Likewise, Josh is an AI for the home that should be pleasing, not intimidating.
Why Josh
So why the name Josh? Many ask if it’s an acronym, assuming the “OS” stands for “Operating System” and the “H” stands for “Home”. In truth, Josh was a placeholder we first adopted when Tim (our co-founder) started using it after a physical trainer he knew. As we thought about what we wanted to convey, friendly and inviting much like our logo, we realized the name Josh really did just that. If you search for Josh in Google, the first result you’ll see is Urban Dictionary’s which reads, “Josh. He is a fun loving guy really funny and can make anyone laugh.He is very quiet at first and seems shy but when you get to know him you will fall in love.” When we saw that we realized it truly was the perfect name for a smart home AI.
So there you have it, the story behind “Josh” and “the dog”. Love it or hate it, we’re pretty certain you won’t forget it. For more, check out http://josh.ai to learn about the future of the connected home.
