These Kickstarter catastrophes and design duds proved tech wasn’t always the answer in 2025

With CES fast approaching, expect another deluge of devices across all sectors of domestic, commercial and personal tech. Yet perhaps just 5% of what's on show at this vast Vegas trade show tends to be genuinely useful. With so much of what passes for innovation in the modern era being either lukewarm, poorly conceived or just plain absurd, we’ve looked back and found ten devices from 2025 that do very little to deliver the bright future of the technotopia.

Read on to discover the Kickstarters that haven't yet been kicked to the curb and the incoming tech ideas that give us the shivers.

1. Pettichat

First off, a little bit of wish fulfilment courtesy of Pettichat, an AI-enabled wearable for your furry friend that promises to be the ‘First Real-Time Pet Translator’, with 94.6% accuracy, no less. Let’s not quibble about how one defines the accuracy of machine-decoded animal noises, but if you’re desperate for conversation and can’t face firing up an AI companion, perhaps this will be a bit of a lark?

‘Understand exactly what your pet is trying to say, and talk back in real time,’ the blurb says. Don’t blame us if it turns out your pet has been cursing you all this time.

More information at Prelaunch.com

2. White Rabbit

Worried about perpetual surveillance? Or do you actually rather enjoy the warm blanket of 24-hour AI-driven observation? If so, you can bring the sensation of an ever-present eye in the sky into your workplace with White Rabbit.

This sinister sphere travels along a track to provide lighting, video and audio tracking, all powered by ubiquitous (and nebulous) AI to ensure it’s always within eavesdropping distance.

More information at Backerclub.co

3. PawSwing Neo

Why do so many of these projects treat pets as a training ground for robotics, AI and automation? A case in point is the PawSwing Neo, an automated grooming parlour in a box that’s designed to tempt your furry friend into the depths of its mechanism with the promise of food.

Throw in a robot litter tray and the fully automated pet care solution is ready to go.

More information at Kickstarter.com

4. SyncOne

Where does one even start with the SyncOne? A personal pleasure device for men, the USP here is that the provision of personal pleasure can be synced up with your favourite online source of personal pleasure content.

The combination of phrases like ‘medical-grade TPU sleeve’ and ‘built-in UV sterilization’ with the inevitable presence of ‘AI’ is the first of many red flags. In mitigation, Hong Kong-based manufacturer Segai suggests the SyncOne also has shared intimacy applications.

More information at Kickstarter.com

5. Ourobot

It's becoming more and more apparent that 'emotional AI companions' are a hornets' nest of complexity that human brains are not (yet) wired to deal with in a rational way. Hence any product that promises 'Emotional Sensing' and a 'Healing Personality' should be taken with a large grain of salt.

The Ourobot is billed as an ‘emotional AI companion robot,’ complete with baked-in ChatGPT and ‘lifelike reactions’. An executive desk toy for the 21st century, it will probably end up being flung at the wall.

More information at BackerClub.co

6. RT-G from Rotunbot

More news from China, where robots are being deployed across all sectors in a vast social experiment. First up is the RT-G from Rotunbot (corporate catchphrase, ‘From Mercury to Earth, we make fiction real!’), an AI-powered spherical police robot capable of firing a net to entrap criminals, like in an episode of Scooby-Doo.

The ball-shaped RT-G is joined by the robotic traffic cop, Hangxing No. 1, designed to buddy up with a human companion to direct traffic through the busy junctions of Hangzhou. The thin end of a infinitely thick wedge, robotic law enforcement can only get more oppressive.

Rotunbot.com.cn

7. Thinking Egg IV

Orijin’s freeform attitude to spelling doesn't bode well for their product design. In case you were wondering, these little choking hazards are supposed to act as mindful guides through the (terrifyingly animated) chaos of your brain at full tilt in the digital morass.

‘It's Time To Slow The F*ck Down,’ Orijin says, offering up five different types of ‘Thinking Egg’ to divert, distract and settle your addled mind. Cadbury’s also makes eggs that serve a similar purpose – and they're perhaps a better investment than this pet rock for the digital age.

TheOrijin.com, more information at Kickstarter.com

8. Dipal D1

What could possibly go wrong by encouraging people to have a 3D animated character trapped in a screen on their desk? In fairness, discovering someone is in possession of the Dipal D1 (the ‘World’s First Curved Screen 3D AI Character Pod’) could be a helpful warning sign about their desire to compartmentalise, restrict and control their surroundings and perhaps even their acquaintances. Run, don’t walk.

More information at Kickstarter.com

9. Crustello

Schadenfreude-hungry tech watchers once observed the joyless and largely useless proliferation of ‘internet-enabled’ knick-knacks. These days the killer buzz-phrase is ‘AI-enabled’, with devices of every stripe tapping into newfound data aggregation abilities for our convenience and delight.

Crustello is a smart bowl that offers ‘real-time insights’ into your sourdough starter. Heaven knows how we ever managed to bake bread in the old days.

More information at Kickstarter.com

10. Launbot

Another gadget that proposes to revolutionise an activity dating back to the dawn of civilisation. Launbot is a doohickey for your duds, designed to hang in the closet and pump air through your clothes using cyclone-style fans in order to dry, freshen and clean.

In addition to a drying bag, you’ll also need the Torso airbag and Pants airbag, both capable of conjuring up personal jump scares aplenty.

More information at Backclub.co