*By Madison Alworth*
[George Takei](https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2018/06/25/george-takei-trump-immigration-rhetoric-bts-rs.cnn) is an outspoken critic of President Trump.
And now the actor is taking his gripes to a new, augmented level, with the app House of Cats. The app launched this week and allows users to interact with animated characters "Trumpy Cat," "Meowlania," and "Vladdy Putin," to name a few.
"I'm a political animal, feline inclined" said Takei in an interview with Cheddar Thursday. "We love cats and we all love politics and to put them together is the House of Cats with a Trumpy Cat."
The satirical Trump can be superimposed onto any surface. Users then instruct him to recite dialogue of their own choosing or even any of the president's real tweets. Users can also record and share videos of themselves in conversation with Trumpy Cat and his band of feline followers.
The app, available on Apple products and Google Play, costs $0.99. As of now, there are no plans to develop costlier, subscription-only content. Takei will donate a certain percent of the profits to Refugees International, a charity for displaced people.
"We are going to counter \[Trump's]\ hostility with support," Takei said.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/george-takei-launches-new-ar-mobile-game-house-of-cats)
Bees are responsible for the bulk of fruit and vegetable pollination — and they're negatively being affected by climate change. Tech startup Beewise is offering a solution with artificial intelligence to create robotic, autonomous hives to help the vulnerable bee populations. Saar Safra, co-founder & CEO, joined Cheddar News to talk about the company's recent $80 million to help make this project possible. "Our solution is not only hardware," he said. "Its software and biology all in one device. That's the challenge, and that's what sets us apart."
Space tourism continues to be generating buzz after the most recent Blue Origin launch. Two of its passengers made history as the first married couple to travel to space. The couple, Marc Hagle, CEO at Tricor, and Sharon Hagle, CEO at Spacekids Global, joined Cheddar News fresh off of their trip to talk about their experience and future space travel plans. "If there is a Santa Claus, we’ll have the opportunity to fly with Virgin Galactic, and maybe we'll have the opportunity to fly with SpaceX," said Marc Hagle, followed by Sharon explaining they had already signed up with Virgin Galactic about 15 years ago.
The metaverse may be the next big thing in the music world. Cheddar News’ Michelle Castillo sat down with Jon Vlassopulos, VP and head of music at Roblox, to discuss virtual concerts and more.
The head of Russia’s space program says the future of the ISS hangs in the balance after the U.S., EU, and Canadian space agencies missed a deadline to meet Russian demands for lifting sanctions on Russian enterprises and hardware.
Catching you up on what you need to know on April 4, 2022, with reports of Russian war crimes in Ukraine, a weekend shooting in Sacramento killing six and injuring 12, Mexico ending its gas subsidization for U.S. drivers, and the University of South Carolina winning the women's NCAA basketball championship, and more.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is taking a 9.2% stake in Twitter to become the social media platform's largest shareholder. Musk purchased approximately 73.5 million shares, according to a regulatory filing Monday.
The impact of the pandemic on people's wellbeing has shown a need for easier access to mental health care. Impact Suite is a digital platform that owns and operates a suite of self-care apps. Clay Olsen, founder and CEO of Impact Suite, joins Cheddar News to discuss the new updates to its 'Lift' app.