AI companion robot Aura aims to ease pet loneliness at home

Leaving pets alone at home has always been a concern for many pet owners. However, artificial intelligence with introducing new solutions for almost every sector of life is stepping in a feature packed device to help pets when they are left alone at home.

At CES 2026 in Las Vegas, Tuya Smart launched Aura, an AI-powered companion robot designed specifically to offer interaction, stimulation, and emotional support to cats and dogs when they’re alone.

What makes Aura different?

According to Tuya Smart, Aura is designed to interact with the pet actively rather than monitoring them passively. Unlike other fixed cameras, the robot can move anywhere in the house to find the pet using visual mapping and object recognition.

It analyses behaviour and sound patterns of the pet to identify emotional states such as stress, anxiety, or loneliness and offers real-time emotional analysis to the owner through a smartphone app.

The robot can interact with the pet in several ways, including laser play, treat dispensing, pet sounds, facial animations, and smart voice. The camera on the device captures short videos of the pet's playtime as well as quiet time.

It then allows the owner to see their pet's daily activities without having to constantly monitor the camera. The robot also returns to its dock to perform both feeding and charging.

Tuya Smart said long loneliness periods can lead to behavioural issues in pets, including hiding, excessive grooming and loss of interest in food. The company said traditional smart pet devices address basic needs but fail to support emotional wellbeing.