If you want to get inside of your pet's head, the tech hasn't arrived yet, but one company hopes to have it trending in the right direction.
Los Angeles-based FluentPet has developed a series of tiles it claims help four-legged companions communicate with their humans. Through training, they can learn to associate various tiles with words they've learned over time and then use their paws to press them.
The tech has been a hit on platforms like TikTok, where tons of "talking dog" videos have gone viral.
There are a wide range of options to select from when it comes to purchasing the tech. Test kits start out around $35 with the most expensive option, They Can Talk Kit, being priced around $230.
The company also recently launched FluentPet Connect, which integrates the tile button system into an app. This helps keep pet owners connected to their pets at all times. If a person isn't home, their pet could send an alert, similar to a text message.
The system is available for an additional $69.99 but is compatible with tiles that have already hit the market.
However, devices like FluentPet and the studies that have been done with their subjects do face skepticism from scientists. Clive Wynne, the founding director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University, explained that rather than language comprehension, the dogs are being conditioned.
“This is one of the most basic forms of learning in the animal kingdom," Wynne told the Washington Post. "The dog forms an association between an action and an outcome that it desires.”
Cheddar News visited the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Robbinsville, New Jersey and spoke to Amazon global communications director Rena Lunak to learn more about how its prepared for the supply chain crunch this holiday season.
Markets turned cautious again, erasing and early gain and ending lower as investors try to handicap how much the new coronavirus variant will impact the economy.
U.S. consumer confidence fell to a nine-month low in November, held back by rising worries about inflation and lingering concerns about the coronavirus.
Wall Street’s losses deepened on Tuesday after the head of the Federal Reserve said it will consider shutting off its support for financial markets sooner than expected.
The United Kingdom's antitrust watchdog has blocked Facebook's acquisition of Giphy and ordered the social network to sell off the GIF-sharing platform, saying the deal hurts social media users and advertisers by stifling competition for animated images.
A labor official is confirming a new union election for Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama based on objections to the first vote.
Now that COVID-19 vaccines are readily available, American Dream mall developer Paul Ghermezian and his team are hoping customers will look for that in-person holiday shopping experience that they missed throughout 2020.
Twitter says co-founder Jack Dorsey will step down as CEO of the social media platform.
The stock market steadied itself Monday following a slide last week brought on by the newest coronavirus variant.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
