Congratulations to the 2026 Alfred P Sloan Grant award winning team Bird a Day!
Bird a Day Team:
Emma Raventos
Zezhen Wei
Victoria Kao
Bird a Day is a daily bird guessing game. Each day brings one mystery bird. Flip clue cards to reveal its silhouette, colors, song, habitat, size, or its depiction in art, poetry or culture, and name the bird using as few clues as possible. For just a few minutes a day, players get to delight in and learn about a bird a day. A year of playing means meeting 365 birds and maybe recognizing one on your windowsill.
From the Team
Bird a Day started with a nursery rhyme. I learned of the European Robin from “Who Killed Cock Robin?” long before I ever saw one, and when I finally did, it felt like magic. This game is an attempt to capture that feeling of joyful discovery.
Bird a Day is built with guidance from the ornithology community, and in the future a community submissions portal will let everyday birders share the photographs, poems, and artwork that birds inspire.
We’re currently recruiting playtesters. If Bird a Day excites you or makes you feel curious, come sign up. Every single tester shapes what this game becomes.
Sign up at: https://birda.day/
Additionally, congratulations to Vya and Lex Arbor for being 2026 Sloan grant honorable mentions!
About the Alfred P. Sloan Grant
Beginning in 2016, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s Public Understanding of Science, Technology & Economics program has awarded a yearly grant to fund game development at the NYU Game Center. Students who are making games that portray science & technology with originality and insight are connected with scientists early in their development process. Over the course of the year, the students work with the scientists to integrate the subject matter and the games. After graduation, students can apply for a grant that gives one game resources to develop and launch the game to the public.