He’s pink. He’s fuzzy. But fair warning…
The dude is snarky.
Space Bunny was developed as an experiment for the Soluna app, inspired by a well-known phenomenon: that Gen Z uses humor — often edgy, sometimes sardonic — to cope with mental health challenges.
The question was: would irreverent humor work in a Gen Z mental health app...?
To find out, I partnered with the genius video storytelling brain of Brenna Eckerson (formerly of Hello Sunshine and Headspace), to together lead a team of creatives in the development of a three-part video mini-series featuring Space Bun: a socially awkward, totally relatable Gen Zer doing his best to avoid the mental health rabbit holes so many digital natives fall down.
Since every hero needs a sidekick, we brought a voice of wisdom and trustworthy authority to the series with an all-knowing, cosmic narrator. Careful not to overstep, the narrator guides Space Bun through each episodic challenge with Morgan Freeman-esque tenor and tenderness.
The perspective-bending and absurdity of a pink rabbit astronaut navigating the complex and nuanced life of Gen Z in a world far, far away aligned perfectly with one of Soluna’s brand archetypes: the Entertainer.
Through the lens of Space Bun’s edgy wit, skepticism of anyone over the age of 25, and irresistible relatability, we explored common Gen Z challenges including anxiety, stress, and emotional regulation — all of which were sourced from both internal user research and external studies like Deloitte’s annual Gen Z and Millennial Survey.
So, will Space Bunny become a new Gen Z hero, á la Duo of Duolingo? Only time will tell.
After a recent design glow-up (hello, orange fur!), early user research shows Space Bun is much beloved by 13-25yos. Soluna app users are also actively searching for the term “bunny,” and the video mini-series has broken into the top ten content pieces out of all 400+ in the app.
Which implies that at least for now, the strategy of less stick, more carrot is working just fine.