As the demand for “personification” reaches its peak, pet socialization and AI companionship are reconstructing the second half of the “pet economy”.
🐾 Future of Pets · Empowering Pet Owners Ecosystem | Official Content
Have you come across posts like this: “Location Beijing, my Corgi Didi is looking for a girlfriend, requirements: complete vaccinations, lively personality, to spend wonderful times together in ‘dog life’.”
This is no joke. On Xiaohongshu, the topic #PetMatchmaking# has surpassed ten million views; on Xianyu, three million people each year are arranging love for their pets. Meanwhile, “Roborock”, founded by the former CEO of General Robotics, has just secured tens of millions in top-tier funding, aiming to create an “AI companion robot” that can truly understand and respond to pet emotions.
From online matchmaking to offline parties, from virtual socialization to smart hardware, a brand new trillion-yuan market driven by “emotional needs” is emerging. As young people view pets as “fur babies” and invest significant emotions in them, how should we understand this profound consumer transformation?
Today’s Content Metadata
Content Tags/Keywords: Pet Socialization, AI Companionship, Emotional Consumption, Personification, Smart Pets, Singles Economy
Content Type Today: In-depth interpretation and forward-looking commentary on industry developments
Core Theme/Information: A deep analysis of the emerging business models represented by pet socialization apps and AI companion robots under the trend of pet “personification” and “emotionalization”, how they meet the emotional projection of owners and the companionship needs of pets, and reshape the value chain of the “pet economy”.
Industry Progress Overview
Key dynamics surrounding this emerging emotional market are as follows:
“Pet Marriage” Demand Explosion: According to reports from 36Kr and other media, it has become a trend for young people to arrange matchmaking and weddings for their pets, with platforms like Xiaohongshu and Xianyu becoming major “matchmaking corners”, giving rise to a series of services from online matching to offline parties and pet weddings.
Mini Programs as New Entry Points: The Aladdin mini program top 100 list shows that while there is no dominant pet socialization mini program yet, the light application model that integrates tools, social, and e-commerce is becoming a new entry point for brands to reach a vast pet owner population.
AI Companion Robots Attracting Capital Attention: According to Yiou.com, “Roborock”, founded by the former CEO of General Robotics, has completed tens of millions in funding, with investment from Zhu Xiaohu’s firm, aiming to develop AI robots that can actively interact with pets, recognize their emotions, and provide companionship.
Market Size Continues to Expand: KPMG’s “2025 China Pet Industry Market Report” points out that emotional consumption and “personified” nurturing are the core driving forces behind market growth, propelling the pet economy to continue its rapid expansion.
Exploration of Vertical Community Platforms: Pet community apps like “Pet Circle” are attempting to integrate various functions such as pet socialization, e-commerce, knowledge sharing, and matchmaking, aiming to create a one-stop “pet metaverse”.
In-depth Interpretation: What Are We Really Paying for “Pet Emotions”?
1. Underlying Logic: The “External Projection” of Owners’ Emotional Needs
Arranging matchmaking, celebrating birthdays, buying toys for pets may superficially seem like care for pets, but the underlying logic is the external projection of modern people’s (especially young people’s) emotional needs. In the fast-paced, high-pressure urban life, pets play multiple roles as “family”, “children”, and “emotional stabilizers”. Therefore, owners unconsciously replicate human social norms, emotional patterns, and rituals onto their pets. The “marriage and matchmaking” of pets essentially compensates for the emotional gaps of the owners, providing them with a sense of satisfaction and healing.
2. Technological Breakthrough: From “Functional Satisfaction” to “Emotional Interaction”
Traditional smart pet products, such as automatic feeders and cameras, address “functional” issues (making things easier for you). In contrast, the new generation of AI products represented by “Roborock” aims to solve **”emotional” issues**. They are no longer passively triggered but can:
Active Interaction: Recognize when a pet is bored and actively entice it to play with lasers, sounds, or treats.
Emotion Recognition: Analyze a pet’s vocalizations and posture to determine if it is anxious, happy, or scared, and respond accordingly.
Health Monitoring: Continuously monitor a pet’s activity level, diet, and water intake during interactions, providing data for health management. This marks the evolution of smart pet hardware from “tools” to “companions”.
3. Business Closure: From “Stranger Socialization” to “Trust E-commerce and Services”
The endpoint of pet socialization apps (like Pet Circle) is not merely to let pets “make friends”. Their true commercial value lies in establishing a community ecosystem based on trust through frequent social interactions, which leads to subsequent business closures:
Trust E-commerce: Pet food and supplies recommended by KOLs or friends within the community have a much higher conversion rate than ordinary advertisements.
Service Matching: Precisely match local services such as boarding, grooming, training, and medical care based on geographic location and pet breed.
Data Accumulation: Users’ social behaviors, consumption preferences, and pet health data will become the platform’s most valuable assets.
Connecting the “Four Precisions”: How Emotional Needs Drive Precision Revolution?
This wave of consumption driven by emotions is uniquely promoting the implementation and evolution of the “Four Precisions” framework.
Connecting Precision Service
Framework Explanation: Provide personalized and customized services covering the entire lifecycle based on data and technology.
Deep Connection: This is the most core embodiment. Pet socialization platforms accurately obtain information about pets’ breeds, ages, geographic locations, and even personality preferences through users’ “showing off their pets” behaviors. Based on these tags, the platform can provide extremely personalized service recommendations—recommending outdoor gatherings for social golden retrievers and home grooming for socially anxious British shorthairs. AI companion robots, through 24-hour data collection, provide customized interaction plans that are “tailored to each pet”.
Connecting Precision Nutrition
Framework Explanation: Develop personalized dietary plans based on individual characteristics of pets.
Deep Connection: Data recorded by AI companion robots on daily activity levels, water intake, etc., is key to achieving “dynamic precision nutrition”. When the robot detects a senior dog with decreased activity, it can suggest that the owner adjust the diet formula to increase joint care components and automatically adjust the feeder’s output.
Connecting Precision Healthcare
Indirect Connection: AI companion robots can serve as “health sentinels” in family settings. By continuously monitoring pets’ abnormal behaviors (such as frequently licking a certain area or showing lethargy), they can promptly alert owners to seek more professional medical examinations, achieving “early detection and early treatment” of diseases.
Connecting Precision Breeding
Indirect Connection: The “matchmaking” and “breeding” information on pet social platforms, although currently unregulated, aggregates a vast amount of grassroots breeding demand and data. In the future, if it can collaborate with professional genetic testing and pedigree management organizations, it is expected to filter out healthier populations and guide the market towards a more scientific and responsible “precision breeding” direction.
[Future of Pets Observation and Commentary]
1. Trend Prediction: From “Software Socialization” to “Integrated Soft and Hard Hybrid Socialization”
We predict that in the next 3-5 years, purely online pet socialization apps will face significant challenges, and the true winners will be those companies that can achieve “integrated soft and hard, virtual and real”. Imagine this: you match your pet with a friend on an online app and arrange to meet on the weekend; when they meet, the smart collars they wear or the AI robots that follow them can automatically exchange information, recording their interaction duration, intimate behaviors, etc., and synchronizing to update their “intimacy” online. This model, where online data guides offline socialization and offline behaviors feed back into online relationship chains, will create a high competitive barrier.
2. Final Thoughts: “Digital Consciousness” and “Emotional Computing Power” are the Ultimate Battlegrounds
The ultimate outcome of this emotional consumption market is not to sell more robots or memberships, but to see who can first create an AI with “digital consciousness” and master the strongest “emotional computing power”. The future AI pet companions will not just be “playmates”; they will have unique “digital personalities” that remember every important moment between you and your pet, and even continue to accompany your pet as your “emotional avatar” after your passing. Companies that can provide this ultimate emotional value will not just be hardware or software companies, but “digital life” companies that define the future of human-pet relationships.
Action Guide: How Should You Respond in Different Roles?
For Pet Owners:
Rational Socialization: Enjoy the fun of pet socialization, but when it comes to breeding, trading, and other aspects, be sure to verify the other party’s information, prioritizing health and safety.
Focus on Data Privacy: When using smart devices or social apps, pay attention to their privacy policies and understand how your pet’s data is being used.
Embrace AI Companions: For pets with separation anxiety or high energy, consider introducing AI companion robots as new playmates, enriching your pet’s life while freeing yourself.
For Industry Practitioners (Service Providers/Brands):
Join Mini Program Ecosystems: Quickly develop or join relevant mini programs, using them as core platforms for brand promotion, user interaction, and private traffic operations.
Collaborate Instead of Building: For offline service providers like pet shops and hospitals, there is no need to build an app; a more efficient way is to collaborate with leading pet social platforms and become their certified service providers to accurately capture customer flow.
Emotional Marketing: Integrate more “personification” and “emotional” elements into product design and marketing, resonating with the values of the new generation of consumers.
For Investors:
Focus on “AI + Robotics” : Pay close attention to teams like “Roborock” that have strong backgrounds in robotics technology and AI algorithms, as they are the core technology drivers in this market.
Look for “Community + Transaction” Closers: Invest in platforms that not only have user communities but also have the ability to efficiently convert them into e-commerce or service transactions, as their business models are more complete and healthier.
Layout for “Digital Pets” : Keep an eye on startups exploring virtual pets, pet digital identities, and other cutting-edge fields, as they may represent the next decade of the “pet economy”.
Interactive Topic
🎤 What do you think should be the most important “superpower” of future AI pet companion robots? Is it the ability to “communicate seamlessly with your cats and dogs” or “perfectly mimic you to play with them”?
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section and explore a future of deep empathy between humans and pets!
[Disclaimer] The information in this article is sourced from publicly available corporate press releases, industry reports, and media coverage, aimed at industry analysis and trend exploration, and does not constitute any specific investment or medical advice. We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all quoted data and information, but readers should verify it themselves.
[Main Information Sources]
Public reports from media such as 36Kr, 21st Century Economic Report, Yiou.com, etc.
KPMG’s “2025 China Pet Industry Market Report”.
Public information from platforms like Aladdin Index, Business Leader Cloud, etc.
Related companies involved in case studies: Roborock, Pet Circle, etc.