Diné YÉIGO (Navajo for “KEEP GOING”) is an interactive Navajo language learning experience built in Niantic Studio by Akilah Martinez, an artist, XR developer, and founder of Glittering World Girl. The experience invites users to explore and pronounce contemporary Navajo words using sound-driven interactions, paired with cultural storytelling and animation.

Designed as a culturally rooted, browser-based AR activation, Diné YÉIGO uses 3D visuals, touch-based audio triggers, and meaningful character design (including a playful coyote guide) to immerse users in Diné bizaad, the Navajo language.

We caught up with Akilah to learn how she brought this project to life using Niantic Studio, what challenges she overcame, and how she’s using AR to break down barriers in Indigenous tech access and language preservation.

What inspired you to create Diné YÉIGO?
I was inspired to create Diné YÉIGO as a tool for revitalizing Indigenous languages and making learning fun and accessible for all. I also wanted to create something that lowered the barrier of entry for Indigenous communities looking to engage with XR.

The main character—a coyote—is a significant figure in Diné culture and storytelling. It felt natural to design an experience around their curious, trickster energy. Diné means “The People” (or Navajo), and YÉIGO means “keep going” or “go with effort.” That’s the message behind this project—keep going, keep learning, keep connecting.

How did Niantic Studio help bring your vision to life?

Niantic Studio gave me a flexible and intuitive platform for AR development. I used the Entity-Component-System (ECS) framework from 8th Wall to create modular components and attach custom audio and animation logic.

The visual editor made it easier to structure the project, while ECS allowed me to precisely control the interactivity—like toggling audio clips and animations through touch events. The ability to sync these elements with state transitions was key to making the experience feel responsive and fluid.

What challenges did you face during development?

The biggest challenge was working around VPS access limitations. I initially wanted to tie the experience to specific real-world businesses in my area, but private VPS locations required a Pro plan.

To solve this, I used Gaussian splats to capture the locations I wanted, and embedded the experience into those 3D scans. That workaround actually helped me learn a lot about spatial storytelling and how to anchor content in immersive environments without relying on VPS.

What were the key steps in building your projects?

Here’s the process I followed:

• Focused first on UI design and asset creation to make the experience feel welcoming
• Used existing 8th Wall templates as a base to speed up development
• Collaborated with Niantic engineers to refine my interactive components
• Built a boombox-style sound component that toggled audio + animations on tap
• Tested extensively across multiple devices to ensure performance and accessibility
  

What advice would you give to other developers using Niantic Studio?

Understand the power of ECS. Components should do one job well. Use states to manage behavior and transitions—like how I used on and off states to control playback.

Also:

• Keep audio and visuals in sync with Audio.mutate() and GltfModel.mutate()
• Use touch input events intuitively and consistently
• Take advantage of the tick and remove methods for performance tuning
• Think modular—design components that can be reused and adapted
• And test! Test across browsers and hardware early and often

These practices made a big difference in making Diné YÉIGO stable, engaging, and extendable.

Where do you see the future of AR—and how does Niantic Studio fit into that vision?

I believe AR has the power to uplift communities and enable new forms of cultural storytelling. It should be a tool for social good—not just entertainment.

Niantic Studio fits beautifully into that vision. It supports a wide range of project types, and it gives underrepresented creators a real shot at making powerful, browser-based experiences that are accessible, expressive, and scalable.

With tools like Studio, we can decolonize XR by telling our own stories, in our own languages, through our own lenses.

Explore the code

Want to build audio-based interactivity like this? Akilah’s boombox tutorial breaks down how to control animations and audio states with ECS in Studio. It’s a great jumping-off point for building sound-driven 3D experiences.

Read the Boombox Tutorial (coming soon)