LAS VEGAS (KGO) — Startups at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas are debuting several AI toys.
Among them are an AI pocket pet created by Sweekar and an autonomous robot that can follow you around from Japanese startup Ludens.
Another toy called Fuzozo is being marketed as an ‘AI emotional companion’ by Tuya Smart and Robopoet. It has built-in cellular capabilities so it can become a “true on-the-go partner.”
Tech analyst Mark Vena, who is at CES, talked to ABC7 News about the buzz.
“There have been toys like that on the market for years, but they’ve been very not very interesting from a sophistication standpoint- they didn’t evolve with the person and the AI capability lets you mature, lets the pet mature with you,” Vena said.
MORE: Labor vs. social robots? Humanoids focusing on accessibility were featured at Silicon Valley summit
The Humanoids Summit 2025 in Mountain View is bigger, better and with even more robots on display for its second run.
But as innovative as they may be, are they safe? In November, consumer group U.S. PIRG Education Fund released a report titled ‘Trouble in Toyland.’
ABC7 News spoke with advocate Fiona Hines.
“We tested three different toys on the market right now and found a number of risks with all of them, from telling users potentially where to find dangerous objects in the house,” Hines said.
One of the toys described how to light a match.
MORE: Teacherless, AI-powered private school expanding Bay Area footprint due to growing demand
After their report, the maker behind this teddy bear suspended sales of its toy.
Hines says it’s unclear right now what the long-term effects of AI companions for children are.
“AI toys simply don’t act the way a real human would, they don’t need anything from you- they don’t ever disagree with you, and so it’s really unclear how that’s going to impact children’s development moving forward,” Hines said.
To make sure safeguards are being considered, State Senator Steve Padilla has introduced legislation that would place a four-year moratorium on the sale and manufacturing of AI chatbots for children under 18.
MORE: Gov. Newsom vetoes bill to restrict kids’ access to AI chatbots
“It’s showing that you can do both at the same time, you can encourage innovation and hope that there are benefits to new technology but you can also have common sense protections,” Padilla said.
He said it’s important for parents to get educated and pay attention.
“It’s alarming and I think it’s important to keep perspective right- we certainly hope this doesn’t proliferate across the market but let’s be real, the market is so large and the technology is so powerful that some of the cases we’re now becoming aware of have gone public and that so many in the media are starting to cover those are mostly like the tip of the iceberg,” Senator Padilla said. “We’re finding out from unfortunate circumstances people who have captured it in the case of companion chatbot, we found out through lawsuits and litigation and tragedy.”
Not all of the AI toys announced at CES have capabilities as advanced as speaking, despite being based on AI. And much more is in development. Mattel struck a deal with OpenAI last year.
Copyright © 2026 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.
Duncan Meyers, founder of BDJOBSTODAY, shares expert career advice, job market insights, and practical tips to help professionals grow and succeed in their careers.
