FUTUREFAUNA: Reshaping the FUTURE of animal computer interaction through a Framework for Animal User Needs and Agency

Technology can enhance animal welfare by allowing animals greater control over their environment and choice over their social connections. Current animal-computer interfaces are often repurposed from human technology, neglecting animals' diverse physical capabilities, sensory perceptions, and cognitive processes. For instance, touch screens suited to human fingers pose challenges for animals with paws, beaks, or unique appendages, while human-based cognitive models underlying these interfaces potentially misinterpret or overlook critical aspects of animal cognition and behaviour. This disconnect between technology and animal users hinders effective interaction and constrains our capacity to gain accurate insights into animal minds. To address this challenge, FUTUREFAUNA's ultimate goal is to draw from empirical evidence to develop a comprehensive framework for designing, implementing and adapting technologies for animal users. The ambition is to fundamentally reshape how animals implement control over their environment and provide radically different opportunities for social connections to improve their well-being. This level of agency will allow us new ways to observe how animals make choices, solve problems, and navigate social situations when given tools that match their abilities. FUTUREFAUNA framework extends classic animal behaviour studies by offering new insights and scalable, documented approach.In the long term, FUTUREFAUNA will open up a new frontier to expand the use of information technology. It tests the foundations of human-computer interaction by looking at new ways to understand users and creating entirely new avenues for studying animal intelligence and social structures. By providing animals with more nuanced and species-appropriate ways to interact with their environment and each other, researchers will be able to explore questions about animal consciousness, emotional intelligence, and cognitive flexibility that were previously out of reach.