Kickstarter Campaign for Reactive Pet Cushion Goes Live

Tokyo based robotics company Yukai Engineering has gone to Kickstarter to fund their latest project. It is a new robot designed to be an alternative pet for those with pet allergies, or simply do not want the hassle of actually taking care of a live being. The Qoobo, is essentially a robotic cushion with a reactive tail. Start petting it and it will react lovingly by moving its tail around to show its appreciation. Much like a real cat would. Minus the temperament, the pooping, the peeing and the feeding.

Qoobo measures 540 x 330 mm and is 160mm tall. It is round so it closely resembles a throw pillow rather than an actual cat. However, it has a thick fur available in Husky gray or French brown, so it looks like a real pet on first glance. It weighs approximately 1000 grams and uses rechargeable batteries or alkaline batteries, which last 8 hours or more.

Qoobo on Kickstarter

They have a modest goal of ¥5,000,000, which is equivalent to around £573,000. They have reached more than half that goal already after only going live for a day with 41 days left to go. Those who pledge ¥8.000 qualify for the Super Early bird package so understandably, this one sold out immediately. So is the ¥9,000 early bird package. The ¥10,000 standard package and upwards are still available however.

The project started all the way in March 2017 and they actually presented it recently at CEATEC Japan in early October. The production prototype is expected to finish by March 2018 and shipment is expected around June 2018.

To back this project, visit the Qoobo project page: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1477302345/qoobo/

Watch the Qoobo in Action