The Talking Gelato Becomes Reality: A Student Idea from H-FARM College Comes to Life at FutureShots

Last September, Gelateria La Romana launched a challenge to the students of H-FARM College: to rethink the customer service experience of the future. It was an open brief, designed to spark creativity and encourage innovation starting from an element as simple—and as essential—as the customer experience.

The team Stracciatella alle More, made up of students Elena Barbieri Ripamonti, Arbias Mucka, Aslı Dönmez, and Carlo Alberto Sartori, seized the opportunity to turn a common problem into a potential asset. Through careful analysis, they identified one of the company’s key pain points: long queues. But instead of trying to eliminate the wait, they chose to enhance it. If people are waiting, it means the product is in demand—so why not transform that moment into something dynamic, engaging, even magical?

That’s where their idea was born: an interactive experience where each gelato flavor comes to life through artificial intelligence. By simply bringing a smartphone close to an NFC tag, customers could start a conversation with the flavors—each with its own voice, personality, pairing suggestions, games, and stories. A way to entertain, but also to streamline the decision process and elevate the overall experience.

The project impressed the management team at Gelateria La Romana so much that the students were invited to present it at the company’s headquarters in Rimini. That’s where the idea was greenlit to become reality. During the 2025 edition of H-FARM’s innovation festival FutureShots, Gelateria La Romana brought the concept to life with an interactive corner. Visitors could actually “talk” to the flavors using their phones, thanks to a specially designed board next to the gelato counter.

The prototyping phase was carried out entirely by H-FARM College students Elena and Arbias, who used the platform Eleven Labs to create the voice agents and programmed the NFC tags that activated the interactions. Additional AI tools were also integrated to refine and enhance the experience.

Seeing your idea take shape, be heard, valued, and ultimately brought to life is one of those moments that makes every effort worthwhile. For these students, it was concrete proof that talent, dedication, and courage can open the door to extraordinary opportunities.