Ropet is CES 2025’s freakin’ cute emote robot that the modern Furby aspires to be

I wouldn’t go so far as to say he’s dethroned, but Mirumi – the sticky ball with a staring problem — now has serious competition for the title of cutest robot in the CES 2025. I just met Ropet, a wide-eyed robot companion with warm, soft fur, little flapping hands, and big feelings. And damn that thing is adorable.

Ropet’s sole mission is to love and be loved. Think of it as a living stuffed animal; has personality, will listen to your deepest darkest secrets without judgment and reach out to hug you when you’re sad. Its appearance is customizable and it has optional integration with ChatGPT, so it’s there if you want it for advanced bot conversations, but you’re not forced to use it. His little button nose is a camera he uses to recognize faces and objects; Ropet can identify and bond more closely with its owner, but it will also remember other people. All of this data is stored and processed locally, meaning it never leaves the device itself.

If you don’t believe this (rightfully so), you can leave Ropet completely disconnected from the Internet and it will still be able to perform all its functions without ChatGPT. This includes responding to sound input, touch and gestures. If you pet or cuddle him, his expression will change to visibly happy. Or it can look grim if you shake it. (What are you, evil? Don’t do that). Show him one of the several dozen objects he knows, like a hotdog or a banana, and you’ll see an emoji of it pop up in his eyes. You can give him the “quiet” sign to calm him down, and he’ll dance along if you’re listening to music.

We’re at the point in CES week where we’re all running on fumes, and Ropet brought unexpected childlike hilarity to this burned-out gremlin in a matter of minutes. Emotional companion robots are ubiquitous at CES, but the ones that actually possess some degree of intelligence tend to be less likeable. And the ones that can huddle are usually not very smart and tend to run into animatronics more. Ropet looks like a cuddly seal – but not realistic enough to dive into the unusual territory of the valley – and its body emits heat to simulate the feeling of holding a living creature.

It’s hard not to draw comparisons to Furby, which is perhaps the most famous example of a robot pet that responds to voice and touch commands. But Ropet takes the whole idea to another level. You can change his eye color in the app and buy different faceplates and skins if you want to mix things up or just can’t decide what you want him to look like. There are also small outfits that you can buy.

A Kickstarter campaign for Ropet managed to raise $228,091, dramatically surpassing its $1,285 goal, so I’m definitely not the only one who thinks this little guy looks pretty promising. There are two purchase options for anyone interested: the Ropet Basic ($299), which comes with a case and a USB-C charging cable, and the Ropet Pro ($329), which comes with those things plus a charging base that has light effects and lets Ropet spin around a bit. The Kickstarter doesn’t end until January 21st, so if you catch it before then, you can get it significantly cheaper. Early bird orders are expected to start shipping in March, with the rest being released later this year.

Now we sit back and see if Ropette will follow in Furby’s footsteps to develop his own slightly macabre story that will continue for decades to come.