Pet owners may soon get calls from their dogs and cats during the workday.
uCloudlink Group Inc. has created the PetPhone, unveiled at the CES 2026 trade show, to allow direct two-way conversations between people and their pets.
The company, a mobile data traffic sharing marketplace, said the wearable smartphone is aimed at closing what it calls the “Pet People Divide” and reducing separation anxiety.
Both dogs and cats recognize human voices and can suffer separation anxiety, research from the American Kennel Club and ASPCA Pet Insurance shows.
“We believe connection is a fundamental right for every family member, including our pets,” said Jeff Chen, CEO and co-founder of uCloudlink, Audacy reported. “By combining PetPhone’s voice capabilities with PetCam’s visual insights, we are closing the Pet People Divide, so no pet ever feels alone.”
Dan Bracaglia, writing for Tom’s Guide, obtained the device at the Mobile World Congress trade show. The palm-sized PetPhone offers a five-day battery life, comes in pink and green, and is now available for $90. Weighing 37 grams, it is designed for pets of at least 8 pounds.
“I’m obsessed,” Bracaglia said of testing it with his 18-pound long-haired chihuahua mix, Belvedere. He expects to publish a full review soon.
“The front features a small speaker and a light that illuminates whenever you’re calling,” Bracaglia explained. “You can also manually turn it on if you need to visually locate your pet in the dark. Similarly, you can have the PetPhone generate audio to help locate your pet.”
The PetPhone uses AI Wellness Monitoring and Precision Positioning to follow an animal’s location and activities, including playing and roaming.
The $90 device requires a separate data plan costing around $10 a month, depending on the carrier.
“Empowering this ecosystem is uCloudlink’s patented CloudSIM technology,” the company said, per Audacy. “As a SIM-card-free solution, it enables PetPhone to connect seamlessly to a global network covering 200+ countries supported by 390+ carriers.”
Calls from owners go through a companion app. Bracaglia said dogs trigger a call by jumping up and down three times in a row within six seconds, potentially after some training. Cats make a call by jumping from the floor onto a surface roughly three feet or taller.
“In addition to the ability to chat with your pet, owners can also set up the PetPhone to play their pet’s favorite music remotely,” Bracaglia said.
An in-development capability would allow calling between pets that both have the device.
uCloudlink simultaneously launched the PetCam for visual check-ins. The PetPhone and PetCam together make up the PetPhone C+ Suite.
