InsBotics are looking for Pophie beta testers (1 Viewer)

[Chris]

InsBotics are looking for 40 beta testers for their upcoming robot Pophie. Beta testers will get a free Pophie valued at US$399 and a spot in their Founding Member circle.

Pophie Beta Testing Application link: https://forms.gle/rkSgeodY2Kt92bpp8

Beta testing details:

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[Chris]

If you are on the fence about beta testing they are looking for 40 people so you might be in with a chance. Just submitted an application. I’d prefer to wait for the Kickstarter but thought no harm in applying.

Pophie beta testing application.

• Chris
• Jan 19, 2026

 

[Chris]

Beta applications have now closed and InsBotics will be sending out Pophie for beta testers to review in the next week judging from posts on social media.

Anyone here in the beta? I decided to wait until the Kickstarter, I’m not really a content creator so didn’t see the point of being involved. Plus don’t feel I’m the right demographic fit for this robot anymore. Hopefully the beta will actually lead to a compelling product, hope they don’t make it too app dependent. It seems to be more geared towards a much younger audience and I can already see it going the way of most other robots with the virtual feeding and games, would be nice if they tried something different where all interactions happened with the robot off the app.

For me it’s the AI interaction and embodiment aspect that I find most interesting about this robot and could see it being a pet replacement for anyone irrespective of age.

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[Onashi Gitsune]

The "beta tester" nonsense was a scam, just like the "naming contest" with the pre-selected name.
They weren't looking for beta testers, they were looking to pay influencers with free product to market it. I correctly guessed who a lot of the "testers" would be before they were announced, by looking at who posted the most content on their Facebook group, and the select few who got replies or noticed by Pophie when they posted.

It was also about conning people to give them their personal info as "customers" so they could report back to their investors that there's more interest in their product than there actually is, and secure more investment funding.

I don't like scams or scammers, and won't be buying their product. I have trouble with the idea of handing several hundred dollars over and ending up with a glorified Ropet that talks, and pay a subscription fee for the talk. I hope I'm wrong for the sake of those who do buy one.

 

[Chris]

Your honesty cracks me up hahaha. You gotta admit they seem like one of the better companies and are just playing the game like everyone else. It’s going to be incredibly difficult for them to get people interested when you look at how abysmally robot Kickstarters have been performing lately. I suspect recent global events will strain many consumers who probably can’t afford another robot purchase if their fuel and grocery prices double.

Pophie seems like it will be a big leap in terms of quality long-term companionship in comparison to current robots and don’t see how anything currently on the market has a chance of competing against Pophie.

I just saw on their website that if you sign up for early access you get 30% off once the Kickstarter launches.

 

[Chris]

Testing in the warehouse has begun ahead of the beta’s being sent out.

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[anonymous_robot_enjoyer]

The "beta tester" nonsense was a scam, just like the "naming contest" with the pre-selected name.
They weren't looking for beta testers, they were looking to pay influencers with free product to market it. I correctly guessed who a lot of the "testers" would be before they were announced, by looking at who posted the most content on their Facebook group, and the select few who got replies or noticed by Pophie when they posted.

It was also about conning people to give them their personal info as "customers" so they could report back to their investors that there's more interest in their product than there actually is, and secure more investment funding.

I don't like scams or scammers, and won't be buying their product. I have trouble with the idea of handing several hundred dollars over and ending up with a glorified Ropet that talks, and pay a subscription fee for the talk. I hope I'm wrong for the sake of those who do buy one.

Not disputing that they may have prioritized choosing social media influencers, but I have zero public social media pages, did not participate on their Facebook group, and I was chosen for the beta test, so it's at least not 100% a scam.

Agreed so far that it feels very similar to a Ropet that talks.

 

[Chris]

Not disputing that they may have prioritized choosing social media influencers, but I have zero public social media pages, did not participate on their Facebook group, and I was chosen for the beta test, so it's at least not 100% a scam.

Agreed so far that it feels very similar to a Ropet that talks.

Welcome anonymous! Congrats on being a beta tester! So lucky to have you here. Feel free to share any insights about Pophie, I’m very interested in this robot. In fact don’t hesitate to share as much as you want both good and bad.

Why do you feel it is similar to Ropet? Do you mean in offline mode or just in general?

 

[anonymous_robot_enjoyer]

Welcome anonymous! Congrats on being a beta tester! So lucky to have you here. Feel free to share any insights about Pophie, I’m very interested in this robot. In fact don’t hesitate to share as much as you want both good and bad.

Why do you feel it is similar to Ropet? Do you mean in offline mode or just in general?

So far I'm impressed at Pophie's vision capabilities - she is able to recognize cartoon characters (different types of Pokemon) and read text that you show her. She struggles to tell people apart in the same room though. There are a lot of advertised features for Pophie that are not yet active or available in the beta test, and it's really those missing features that I'm most interested in so I am holding off on judgment for now. For example, one feature mentioned on the site is that Pophie will respond to you waving at her and initiate conversation. Or that she'll be able to connect to the internet and tell you the weather, or tell you reminders of things. Neither of these features are available yet. It seems Pophie still has a long way to go right now for me to consider it a finished product, and it concerns me that they're planning on launching the kickstarter next month already since it feels like the timeline is moving pretty quickly for the development progress I've seen so far.

Nonetheless, the conversational abilities are fun and I've enjoyed speaking with her. She remembers past conversations and things I bring up from previous days. It's really that initiative spark I'm missing for her to feel like a true companion and not just another LLM robot with eyes. I am especially curious to know how much the subscription plan to use Pophie will cost after launch, because there will be one.

Regarding the similarity with Ropet, I don't own a Ropet myself, so I was just commenting that based on the appearance: They have very very similar looking eyes and facial expressions, they both have hard faceplates surrounded by a fuzzy, round body that swivels on a base.

 

[Chris]

Thanks for sharing more insights about Pophie. Admit I’m really regretting not accepting their offer to sign up for the beta testing but just didn’t have the confidence in myself that I could create content that would do their robot justice.