MeowTalk, an app developed by Akvelon, identifies your fluffy friend's meow into something humanoid.
In a recent report, studies reveal that a cat's owner tailors how the feline sounds. Meows are unique, with some more vocal than others.
"Using machine learning MeowTalk instantaneously translates your cat's meows into one of nine general cat intents; these nine intents represent cat moods and states of mind," the app description reads.
MeowTalk amassed a positive 4.3 out of 5 stars rating on Google Play Store. Although the translation itself is still far from perfect and some terrible experience with connection, users praise the app for its simple and easy-to-use UI/UX.
Akvelon is an engineering company known for its notable works on Amazon Alexa.
How Does MeowTalk Work?
MeowTalk translates your cat's meows by recording them and maximize the use of artificial intelligence (AI) made by Akvelon.
To get the best MeowTalk experience, users can train the app by recording their cats to understand their patterns because, as mentioned above, cats' sounds vary depending on their owners. Instead of a generic database, MeowTalk needs to build an experience with its users.
By labeling and recording sounds, MeowTalk understands better — or simply put, it gets better after each use.
As of this writing, MeowTalk only has 13 phrases in their dictionary, including "I'm angry," "I'm going to attack," "I'm in love," or "I'm hunting."
"Our one cat that is obsessed with my wife said "mommy" and "I'm in love." Had a harder time with our other cat that freaks out if our child uses the bathroom without him," one user writes.
Javier Sanchez, the technical program manager at Akvelon, said that the app aims to be a smart-collar for cats, as the BBC noted.
If a translation turns out to be wrong, users are free to suggest a fix, and MeowTalk will update it by itself.
Privacy and 'Miscommunication' Concerns
However, MeowTalk does have some privacy concerns. As the app uses live recordings to perform, several users may be worried about whether the recordings will only be stored on their phones or not.
MeowTalk is still in a 'development phase,' meaning that it could be changed from time to time to meet the EU's GDPR privacy law. Concerned users are free to uninstall the app until it meets the requirement.
There is also a chance of miscommunicating between the pets and their parents.
Cat behavior specialist Juliette Jones told the BBC that a wrong impression could happen due to the translation's inaccuracies. Jones works at Wood Green, The Animals Charity.
A purring cat doesn't always mean they're content, and she believes that the app should only be used for entertainment purposes.
MeowTalk is available for Android devices on Google Play Store and iOS on Apple App Store.
