Stop burning your tongue: This $25 robot “blows” on your drink to cool it

Think of the sound your lips make when you blow on food that’s too hot to eat. Maybe it sounds more like “fufu.” It is from this vocal sound that the Nékojita cat FuFu robot takes its name, and on CES showroom In Las Vegas, I experienced first-hand the refreshing breath of Nicojita Fufu.

Unlike my real cat, who only sneezes into my hot drinks, this little feline robot hangs over the side of your soup bowl or coffee mug and blows gentle blasts of cool air onto whatever you want to cool down. Inside is a fan that generates “breaths” at a random rhythm designed to mimic human breathing.

As he breathed silently on the back of my hand with his button-sized cat mouth, it occurred to me that it was probably more effective at cooling hot food than warm human breathing—because it was really cold. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to taste anything that the robot blew to make sure it didn’t burn my tongue, but your food and drink should reach the perfect temperature within 3 minutes.

Translated into Japanese, the word “Nékojita” means “cat’s tongue” – a phrase used to describe an intolerance to hot food. Many adults have sensitive tongues, but the idea for the robot initially came from a member of Yokai’s engineering team who wanted an easier way to refrigerate his child’s food.

The robot is small enough to easily fit in the palm of your hand, making it easy to carry. There will be absolutely nothing stopping you from carrying it in your bag to take out in a café or restaurant if you have a particularly sensitive tongue.

When it becomes available on Kickstarter later this year, the Nékojita FuFu will cost just $25. If you’re the type who buys Christmas gifts throughout the year rather than putting them off until the chaos of the holiday shopping season, this would make a perfect stocking stuffer for 2025. I’ve already earmarked it for some of my younger family members, who I know will be immediately impressed by Cats A robot that can cool down their hot chocolate.