In July I moved through 8 countries and 17 cities. I brought home a stack of fridge magnets and a memory card full of photos. Those two habits—collecting small tokens and recording moments—are the core of my final project. I want to build a small camera with an onboard AI that helps me turn a day of photos into something I can actually live with, not just store.

Here’s the idea in plain terms. As I shoot during the day, the camera groups photos into simple “moments” based on time, place, and recurring subjects. At the end of the day (or after a chosen window), it turns each group into a digital “fridge magnet”: a single tile with a cover image, city, date, and a short label. The device keeps these magnets locally and also pushes them to a website.

When I open the site on my phone or laptop, I see a clean wall of magnets instead of a messy gallery. I can click a magnet to expand the photos behind it, swipe through, and close it without getting lost. I care about the experience more than features. I want the grid to feel steady and calm. No autoplay, no pop-ups. Each magnet should be easy to read at a glance and easy to file away. I can pin a few favorites to the top, merge or split a magnet if the grouping feels off, and add a short note when I actually have something to say. Privacy matters: the device should work offline and sync only when I allow it. If I don’t want a day online, it stays on the camera.

There’s a second piece that matters to me. I grew up writing a daily diary. I’d like this device to connect to a small thermal printer. Each night, the camera uploads that day’s photos, pulls out a few themes, and prompts the AI to draft a very short diary—three to six lines, sometimes in a compact poem format, nothing dramatic. I can edit it on the website if I want, then hit print. A small receipt comes out. I stick it on the real fridge or keep it in a box. It gives the day a clear ending and turns digital traces into something I can touch.

What success looks like

I can glance at the wall and immediately recall where I’ve been, without scrolling forever. Making a “magnet” is automatic, but still editable when I care. Printing the daily slip takes seconds and doesn’t feel like work. Over time, the wall becomes a map of my year, and the box of slips becomes a quiet timeline I can flip through.

Scope

Build the camera housing and basic electronics; run a lightweight model on-device for clustering/summarizing; design local storage and a simple sync; ship a minimal web UI for the magnet wall; integrate a standard thermal printer module. Stretch goals include basic search (city, date, keywords), a toggle for public/private magnets, and a simple way to export a month as a PDF. This isn’t meant to be another social feed. It’s a small personal system that respects my attention, organizes what I already do, and leaves me with something I’ll actually revisit.

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