--- title: Bistro: Smart Cat Feeder Uses Facial Recognition description: Bistro is a smart cat feeder that has the power to recognize your feline's face in order to distribute and then track its food intake. canonical: https://time.com/2983281/theres-now-facial-recognition-software-for-cats/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-07-16T17:00:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:43:25.644Z og:title: There's Now Facial Recognition Software for Cats og:description: FINALLY og:url: https://time.com/2983281/theres-now-facial-recognition-software-for-cats/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0eb14bab4990d936/69869bb3e8524becab603e17/cat.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1210 og:image:height: 681 og:image:alt: cat og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: There's Now Facial Recognition Software for Cats twitter:description: FINALLY twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0eb14bab4990d936/69869bb3e8524becab603e17/cat.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # There's Now Facial Recognition Software for Cats > Sponsored content. 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It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=b30e1ef0-7510-4ee3-84c8-ea6a9ee02dfd&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Bistro: The Smartest Cat Feeder. Ever. [Watch (HLS stream): Bistro: The Smartest Cat Feeder. Ever.](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/kBvxruEt.m3u8) (2:16)  _Published 2014-07-16. Bistro: The Smartest Cat Feeder. Ever._ by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Jul 16, 2014 5:00 PM UTC  Bistro by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Jul 16, 2014 5:00 PM UTC For too long, humans have been reaping all the rewards of facial recognition software. But no longer. Entrepreneur Mu-Chi Sung is bringing the advanced technology to cats — and while it might not help [them find love online due to “facial compatibility,”](http://techland.time.com/2013/12/31/anyone-can-find-love-in-2014-and-we-mean-anyone/slide/find-your-face-mate/) or be [better targeted in malls](http://articles.latimes.com/2011/aug/21/business/la-fi-facial-recognition-20110821), it will help them maintain their goal weight. Sung is the [co-founder of Bistro](https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/bistro-the-smart-feeder-that-recognizes-your-cat-s-face), a smart cat feeder that has the power to recognize your feline’s face in order to distribute and then track its food intake. It can also tell your cats’ faces apart to prevent jerky tendencies of stealing the food that is rightly their brethren’s. But the endeavor, by Sung’s Taiwanese company 42ARK, isn’t for cat vanity’s sake. “I have three cats, and how I fed them was I put the food in the bowl and had no idea what they’re eating,” says Sung, who didn’t realize his cat Momo stopped eating food due to illness until he found her dehydrated and paralyzed on the floor of his house. The jaundiced cat was suffering from pancreatitis, and while things were looking dire for Momo, the amputation of her two rear legs saved her life.  Momo the cat Bistro While Sung assured us that Momo is now fine and back to playing with laser pointer, an early indication of eating abnormalities would have inspired him to seek medical help faster. This uses a similar ideology as [Whistle](http://www.whistle.com), a Fitbit of sorts for dogs, that tracks their daily activity and sleep patterns. “A cat doesn’t speak for themselves, that’s why we need Bistro to speak for them,” Sung says. “With Bistro you get notified \[via the app\] if a change in feeding occurs.” A scale eating platform tracks cats’ weight and owners can also watch live streams of their cats eating. You know, if they’re into that kind of thing. “Not many people will do that,” Sung says, greatly underestimating obsessive cat owners everywhere.  Bistro Bistro launched an [Indiegogo campaign Tuesday](https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/bistro-the-smart-feeder-that-recognizes-your-cat-s-face) to bring the product to market. Indiegogo users can buy it for a special price of $179, although Sung thinks it will cost $249 in stores. This isn’t the first attempt to incorporate cat facial recognition in every day life. The [image recognition company Quantum Picture](http://www.quantumpicture.com/Flo%5FControl/flo%5Fcontrol.htm) found a way to use [image recognition](http://hackaday.com/2010/05/14/cat-door-unlocks-via-facial-recognition/) to let the company cat inside through the pet door only if she wasn’t carrying an animal in her mouth. And in 2010, [Panasonic System Networks updated FaceU](http://techcrunch.com/2010/12/16/face-recognition-for-dogs-cats-and-birds-theres-software-for-that-video/) so it could recognize pets’ individual faces to tag in group photos. Last year, a company called [PiP launched an Indiegogo campaign](https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/pip-the-pet-recognition-company) to use facial recognition to reunite lost cats (and dogs) with their owners, although it only made $2,746 of its $20,000 goal. Bistro hopes to raise $100,000 to bring the product to market, and it raised almost half its goal in half a day. Sung has worked in image recognition for years and thinks that applying it to cats is the next step in the technology. He says that 42ARK is even thinking of using facial recognition on cats’ litter box habits, although he admits that it’s “a little bit creepy.” ## Transcript Have you ever worried about your cats when you're at work or on vacation? Are they eating regularly? Are they drinking enough? Cats are not just our pets. But also beloved family members. So naturally, their health management is critical to us. That's why we built bistro. [ MUSIC ] The ultimate health monitoring solution for your beloved pets. [ MUSIC ] Bistro is a smart feeder that keeps an eye on your furry friends. When they're home alone. [ MUSIC ] Since cats cannot speak for themselves, Bistro does it for them. If any change in her appetite occurs, Bistro will notify you immediately. By using cutting edge. Cat facial recognition technology. Bistro always knows exactly which cat is feeding. With the powerful Bistro app you can easily check your kitty's diet history and watch her live while she's having her lunch, all from the palm of your hand. You can also share your cat's most adorable moments with friends, subscribe to their posts, and meet cat lovers, from around the world, through Bistro's online community. What's more, Bistro suggests, healthier food options to help keep your cats in shape, based on our powerful, analytic platform. I love my cat, and they are family to me. A cat doesn't speak for themself. That's why we need Bistro to speak up for them. With your support, we can ramp up the production line and make this a reality. With Bistro, we can help cat owners around the world to know their cat better, and have healthy [ MUSIC ] With you, so we can make a warm memory with that / g /. So, please, join us to help them to make this a reality. 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