StoryBots

StoryBots launched to the public in the summer of 2012 and has been featured on CNN, The New York Times, CNBC, and other news outlets. Gregg Spiridellis, co-founder and CEO of StoryBots, told CNBC in 2013 that he and his brother had five young children between them and noticed "a massive shift in how kids are consuming media". In May 2019, Netflix announced that it had acquired the StoryBots media franchise and signed co-creators Evan and Gregg Spiridellis to an exclusive producing deal. The acquisition was the first of its kind for Netflix and was part of a stated commitment to expand its educational content. ==Television programming==

The StoryBots franchise's original TV series Ask the StoryBots premiered on Netflix on August 12, 2016. The show follows the StoryBots characters Beep, Bing, Bang, Boop, and Bo (a.k.a. "Answer Team 341B"), and stars Judy Greer. Answer Team 341B goes on adventures into the human world to help answer kids' biggest questions. The first season featured guest appearances from Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg, " Weird Al" Yankovic, Kevin Smith, Garfunkel and Oates, Tim Meadows, and Chris Parnell. Ask the StoryBots received critical acclaim for its educational quality and entertainment value for both parents and children. A second season premiered on Netflix on August 24, 2018, and featured guest appearances from Snoop Dogg, Edward Norton, Christina Applegate, Wanda Sykes, David Cross, Ali Wong, Kristen Schaal, and David Koechner. A third season was released worldwide on Netflix on August 2, 2019, and includes guest appearances from John Legend, Zoe Saldaña, Jennifer Garner, Jason Sudeikis, Alyssa Milano, Tony Hale, Maria Bamford, and Reggie Watts. All three season's music soundtracks are available on most music streaming services. Spinoffs A companion series, StoryBots Super Songs, premiered on October 7, 2016, also on Netflix. While each episode of Ask the StoryBots featured the lead characters answering a child's single question, StoryBots Super Songs focused on broader topics, such as outer space, colors, shapes, and dinosaurs, through music and live-action vignettes with real children. Episodes were also released on StoryBots' YouTube channel. Ask the StoryBots also spun off a holiday special, A StoryBots Christmas, which premiered December 1, 2017, on Netflix. Featuring a guest appearance by Ed Asner as Santa Claus, the special received two Daytime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Special Class Animated Program, as well as four additional nominations. A new series called StoryBots: Answer Time premiered on Netflix on November 21, 2022, and includes guest appearances from Danny DeVito, Zooey Deschanel, Common, Sophie Turner, Kevin Smith, Anne Hathaway, Chrissy Teigen, Patton Oswalt, Gabriel Iglesias, and Craig Robinson. A second season of this show premiered on Netflix on July 10, 2023, and includes guest appearances from Rainn Wilson, Josh Gad, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Scarlett Johansson, Gabrielle Union, Joe Lo Truglio, Steve Buscemi, Kristen Bell, Simu Liu, Julie Bowen, Trevor Noah, and Jessica Alba. Another spin-off series called StoryBots: Super Silly Stories with Bo premiered on Netflix's YouTube channel on June 26, 2022. The series consisted of four seasons, with a total of 26 short form episodes (approximately four to six minutes in length), and four long-form episodes (approximately 22 to 44 minutes in length). Directed, co-written, and edited by Henry Dalton, this series differed from Ask The StoryBots and StoryBots: Answer Time in being comedy-led rather than centering around a child's question to be answered. Super Silly Stories instead focused on a single StoryBot, Bo, and featured much more interaction from the unscripted live-action children. The series was nominated for two Kidscreen Awards, winning "Best Web/App Series - Branded (6-10 Years)." The series has not become available on the streaming platform Netflix. ==Digital library ==

StoryBots created a collection of online learning content and activities that were available at StoryBots' official website before its acquisition by Netflix in 2019. Common Core-aligned kindergarten-level math games == StoryBots Classroom ==

In 2016, StoryBots launched StoryBots Classroom, a free online resource for educators that includes unlimited access to the entire StoryBots library of digital books, videos, activities, the then-newly created Common Core State Standards Initiative-aligned Math Games, and classroom management tools including the Backpack and Class Roster. When it was released, StoryBots Classroom was by profiled by Education Week and was named an "S'Cool Tool of the Week" by EdSurge. It has since received the Teachers' Choice Award and the Tech Edvocate Award for best early childhood education app or tool. In an interview, CEO Gregg Spiridellis cited significant interest in StoryBots by teachers as the impetus to "invest more in building a product custom-tailored for classroom use, with an emphasis on interactive projection boards, classroom tools, and more educational content." After Netflix’s acquisition of the brand, StoryBots Classroom was made unavailable. ==YouTube channel==

StoryBots first uploaded five videos to YouTube in June 2012. StoryBots was also nominated for a 2019 Webby Award in the "Video Series & Channels – Animation" category. In 2018, StoryBots signed with the DHX Media-owned WildBrain to manage its YouTube channel. In January 2019, the channel rebranded itself as Netflix Jr. to coincide with the buyout of StoryBots by Netflix. ==Print books==

In addition to ebooks available on its website, StoryBots also has several print books featuring its characters that are published by Random House Children's Books. Titles include: • The Amazing Planet Earth (Step Into Reading) • Cars Are Cool • ''The Moon's Time To Shine (Step Into Reading)'' • StoryBots ABC Jamboree • Trucks Are Terrific • Tyrannosaurus Rex (Step Into Reading) == Awards ==

Since its founding in 2012, StoryBots has won numerous awards for its digital content, including the Teachers' Choice Award from Learning Magazine, Parent's Choice Award, Family Choice Award, Tech Advocate Award, and an Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review. For its television work, including Ask the StoryBots, A StoryBots Christmas, StoryBots: Answer Time, StoryBots: Super Silly Stories with Bo, and StoryBots Super Songs, StoryBots has won nine Daytime Emmy Awards, an Annie Award, and a Kidscreen Award. It has received recognition from the British Academy Children's Awards and Peabody Awards. == References ==