What Nowa is What it does How it works Why it works Safety & control Compare Pre-order

less nagging, more follow-through

The pet that turns routines into play.

Nowa is a virtual pet in a handheld device. As your child cares for it, they practice everyday routines, calming down, and caring for others.

Reserve your Nowa → See how it works →

$149 $99 pre-order · Ages 3–10 · Ships October 2026 · Fully refundable

"I want to stay calm, and I want my kid to learn how, too."

Every parent we built Nowa for said a version of this. So we started there.

What Nowa is

A pocket-sized pet, not a screen to scroll.

No tablet, no app for the kid. The pet lives in a handheld device built for small hands. Three chunky buttons and a screen just big enough for the pet it holds.

Nowa device front view with the pet on screen and three colorful buttons
Back of the Nowa device with speaker grille and coral Nowa logo
Side view of the Nowa device showing its coral scroll wheel
Side view of the Nowa device showing the USB-C port and headphone jack

01Meet the Nowa device

Display+
320 × 240 color LCD

Scratch-resistant screen cover. Vivid colors built for pixel-art pet animations.

Battery+
2,000 mAh · 8–10 hours

USB-C fast charging. Lasts a full day of play on a single charge.

Audio+
Speaker + microphone + 3.5 mm jack

Clear audio up to 2 m. Push-to-talk mic for the child's voice. Use headphones with a 3.5 mm plug.

Connectivity+
Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz · Bluetooth 5.0 LE · full offline play

Works offline. Stories, songs, and missions download to the device so your child can play anywhere. Connects when available for updates and new content.

Controls+
3 buttons + scroll wheel + motion sensor

Buttons and a scroll wheel for small hands. Power, voice (push-to-talk), select/back. Scroll wheel for menus. Shake and tilt the device to play.

Safety & privacy+
Hardware mic mute switch

Physical circuit disconnect, not software. When the switch is off, no audio can be captured. FCC, CPSIA, and ASTM F963 toy-safety certified. Lead-free, phthalate-free materials.

In the box+
Device · USB-C cable · manual

2.9 × 3.2 in (7.3 × 8.0 cm). Fits a coat pocket or backpack pouch. ABS case with rounded, child-safe edges, built for small hands. Ships with a 0.5 m USB-C charging cable, quick-start manual, and safety booklet.

What it does

Small missions. Everyday practice.

When the pet needs help, your child takes on a real-world activity. Each one is a chance to practice routines, managing feelings, or planning and focus.

Less reminding. More getting ready.

Brushing teeth, getting dressed, starting homework. You choose the routine, and Nowa turns it into a mission your child completes to help their pet.

3× betterKids with a consistent bedtime routine fell asleep faster, woke less, and had steadier daytime moods.Mindell et al., Sleep, 2009 · replicated across 10,000+ children

Shaped with Dr. Steven Kurtz · Parent-child interaction

Explore routines with Nowa

The learnings & science

Built with the scientists who wrote the science.

Those frameworks aren't borrowed second-hand. Nowa was shaped by the researchers behind them.

Portrait of Dr. Susanne DenhamDr. Susanne DenhamEmotional competenceGeorge Mason University
Portrait of Dr. Megan McClellandDr. Megan McClellandExecutive functionOregon State University
Portrait of Dr. Steven KurtzDr. Steven KurtzParent-child interactionKurtz Psychology Consulting
Portrait of Dr. David MouDr. David MouMental-health systemsBenchmark Health Group
Their full credentials+

Dr. Susanne Denham · Professor Emerita, George Mason University. 40+ years researching how children process and manage emotions; creator of CAPSEL and the Affect Knowledge Test.

Dr. Megan McClelland · Professor, Oregon State University. Co-creator of the HTKS self-regulation task, used in 31 countries; 116+ peer-reviewed publications, cited 23,000+ times.

Dr. Steven Kurtz · President, Kurtz Psychology Consulting. ABPP board-certified child psychologist; one of only 21 certified global PCIT trainers worldwide.

Dr. David Mou · CEO, Benchmark Health Group. Harvard-trained physician (MD and MBA); named "Top 10 Under 35 for Healthcare" by LinkedIn.

See how we design each mission with our advisors · Inside the learning & science →

How it works

From your routine to their mission.

The app where you set the routines, the device where the pet lives, and the real world where your child follows through.

YOU

Set the routine

Mornings, homework, bedtime. Two minutes in the parent app.

THE PET

Asks for help

On its device, your routine becomes a mission the pet needs finished.

YOUR CHILD

Does it for real

Shoes on, teeth brushed, calm practised. The pet celebrates; nobody nags.

YOU

See the growth

Wins and progress land back in your app, day by day.

Why your child keeps choosing it: the care loop.

No chores assigned, no behaviour graded. The pet just has needs and feelings, and the loop turns on its own.

Nowa pet expressing an emotion
01

The pet feels

Hungry, sleepy, or wobbly, shown in its own sounds and motion.

Watering can caring for the pet
02

Your child cares

Little needs, met with a tap. Big ones become missions, out in the real world.

Nowa pet evolving from small to big
03

The pet grows

It thrives and evolves. The reward your child can see.

Pixel child waving
04

Your child grows

Caring for their pet gives your child regular practice with calm and routines.

Pixel-art scene of a child watering a sprout

Play beats being taught. Across 17 studies of nearly 3,900 children, learning woven into play beat direct teaching for gains in early maths, focus, and task-switching.

Skene et al., Child Development, 2022 · meta-analysis of guided play

Nowa out in the world

Two children explore the Nowa device together at a play table
Two curious kids. One little pet.
Close-up of a child holding Nowa with a pet on its screen
Their pet, right in their hands.
A smiling girl holds her Nowa device in a car seat
Nowa comes along for the ride.
A hand holds the Nowa device, showing its screen and colorful buttons
Small enough to bring along.
A child reads a book under a blanket with Nowa on a table nearby
A book, a blanket, and Nowa nearby.
A hand turns the coral scroll wheel on the Nowa device
Turn the wheel. See what happens.
A child sits on a rug, smiling at the Nowa device
Time to play on the living-room rug.
A child sleeps with a teddy bear while Nowa rests on the bedside table
Bedtime: the pet gets tucked in too.

"Nowa's pet has feelings, not words. When the pet doesn't speak, your child does. That's how we rebuild imagination."

Daniel Nguyen Daniel Nguyen · Dad and Co-founder, Nowa

Why it works

Kids follow through on what they love.

Charts and reminders get ignored. A pet they love gets looked after. So we made caring the whole game.

Pet glowing with a heart

Care for it like a real pet

A real little creature to feed, wash, play with, and tuck in. Caring for someone other than themselves is where the bond starts.

Pet evolving into a new form

Collect a world of creatures

A whole planet of creatures to collect, each evolving with your child's care, so no two journeys are ever the same.

Child playing alongside their pet

Games to play side by side

Mini-games and little quests your child and their pet take on together, just for the fun of it.

Pet with an open storybook

A world that keeps opening up

Caring unlocks more to enjoy: bedtime stories, songs, and fun-fact podcasts. The more they care, the bigger the world gets.

BrimBRIM
NoriNORI
OllieOLLIE
FloriFLORI
MikoMIKO
PuffinPUFFIN
TaroTARO
Nori, crystal formNORI · CRYSTAL
Miko, scholar formMIKO · SCHOLAR
Taro, pilot formTARO · PILOT
Brim, viking formBRIM · VIKING
Nori, coral formNORI · CORAL

Who might your child meet? Never a set to complete.

MORE REWARDS AS YOUR PET GROWS

Stories

Classics retold, plus original tales from the Nowa universe.

The Lion and the Mouse2:16

Songs

A morning anthem to start the day, a lullaby to end it.

Yellow Duck1:27

Podcasts

A curious host and a real expert, on science, nature, and life.

Why Do Planets Spin?10:57

Tap play to hear real samples. Unlocks are part of the game.

Why does caring for the pet unlock stories, songs, and podcasts?+

Caring for the pet unlocks more stories, songs, and podcasts to enjoy. The content was chosen with our child-development advisors, and you control what is available.

Pre-order

Reserve their first Nowa today.

$149 $99 today·Ships October 2026·Fully refundable

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Safety & control

The safety isn't a setting. It's the design.

Most kids' apps are built to hold attention. Nowa gives it back: short play that always points back to real life, and a pet that can only say what you've chosen for it.

A natural part of the day, never the center of it.

Like a real pet, Nowa fits into the day. Checked on here and there, never one long sitting.

  • A few short check-ins, about 10–15 minutes each
  • No infinite scroll, autoplay, or notifications pulling them back
  • Every check-in points back out: real routines, real people, real play

A pet to look after, not a companion to talk to.

Talking companions are built to be needed, to keep your child in the conversation. Nowa is the opposite: a pet your child looks after.

  • Speaks only in sound, motion, and feeling, never human words
  • No open internet. Nothing it can say that you didn't choose
  • A closed system with one job: bringing the pet to life. It grows from how your child cares for it, never from conversation

♪ prrr… blip!

Nowa speaks in sound, motion, and feeling. Your child does the understanding.

Miko, a pixel-art Nowa pet, listening

No open internet · COPPA · ASTM F963 · No ads, ever

Safety & control

You choose the routines and set the limits.

See what your child has been practicing, with a simple overview in the parent app.

Mission Control

Tell us about your child and the moments your family finds hardest. Onboarding tailors a mission pack to your needs, covering routines, feelings, and planning and focus. You can then choose and adjust each mission.

See it →

Growth insights

See what your child practiced today, this week, and over time. Get plain-language summaries, skill trends, and ideas for what to talk about together.

See it →

Stay in the loop

Set your pet’s bedtime and content limits. Check daily activity, see how your child cares for their pet, and view the pet’s profile and event log.

See it →

Routine setup and basic tracking are included. Full growth insights are part of optional Nowa+.

Compare

Calm like Yoto. Developmental like Lovevery. But alive.

AudioPlay kitsTabletsNOWA
Responds to your child✗✗~✓
Builds a bond over time✗✗✗✓
Sends them back to real life✓✓✗✓
Built with scientists✗~✗✓
No open internet, no ads✓✓✗✓

The Day-One Bundle

$99 reserves the whole Day-One Bundle.

The $149 device·6 months of Nowa+ free·The Handbooks, from the day you reserve·Fully refundable

Reserve your Nowa for $99 →

See the full breakdown ↓

From beta families

From the families who tested it first.

Real households, real days. Words from the beta program.

My son used to fight me for 20 minutes every morning about his shoes. Now he's racing to get them on because he wants to tell his Nowa pet he's ready for the School Mission.

Mark J. · Dad of a 6-year-old BETA FAMILY

She came downstairs and said, 'I did turtle time so my pet could calm down.' Then she did it again at dinner, completely unprompted.

Dana · Mom of a 5-year-old BETA FAMILY

The part that won me over is how it ends. The mission finishes, the pet winds down, and she just puts it away. No screaming for five more minutes. I didn't think that was possible.

Bianca · Mom of a 5-year-old BETA FAMILY

I braced for another 'educational' toy that does nothing. Six weeks in he's more patient, plans his missions out loud, and it's not the zombie stare the tablet used to give me.

Sam K. · Dad of a 6-year-old BETA FAMILY

It's the first screen I don't feel guilty about. Ten minutes, then he's off building a fort because his pet 'needed' one.

Priya · Mom of a 6-year-old BETA FAMILY

I figured this would end up in the toy graveyard by week two. Six weeks in, the pet's still fed and my mornings are still quiet.

Alex M. · Dad of an 8-year-old BETA FAMILY

Bedtime used to be a 40-minute standoff. Now he puts the pet to bed first, and by the time it's settled he's in pajamas with his teeth brushed. I stopped being the one counting down.

Tomás R. · Dad of a 7-year-old BETA FAMILY

She used to just explode. Now she can actually say 'I'm frustrated' before it boils over. Not every time, but enough that our evenings feel different.

Renée · Mom of a 6-year-old BETA FAMILY

Pre-order · 500 reservations

$99 today.

Save 66% · $195 off the $294 day-one value

The device, six months of Nowa+, the Handbooks, and pre-order extras.

See what's included ↓

Reserve your Nowa for $99 →

Not a countdown — 500 reservations only, then it's $149·Ships October 2026·Fully refundable

Before you ask

The questions every parent asks.

What age is Nowa designed for?+

Kids ages 3–10, the stage when routines, independence, and emotional habits develop fastest. The experience is age-scaffolded so it grows with your child.

How does Nowa build habits without nagging?+

Instead of you repeating instructions, daily routines become missions your child does to help their pet grow. The pet celebrates wins and encourages them through struggles, so habit-building feels like play, not punishment.

Is Nowa safe for young children?+

Yes. It runs as a closed system: the pet feels, remembers your child's care, and chooses missions inside a walled space with no access to the open internet. It never speaks to your child in human language, and collects nothing beyond what personalizes the experience. It was built with our child-development researchers to support growth, not maximize engagement.

Is my child's experience safe and private?+

The pet doesn't converse, so there's nothing to monitor and nothing to leak. No open internet, content age-scaffolded for 3–10, built to meet COPPA and ASTM F963 standards. You stay in control through topic boundaries, bedtime modes, and usage limits in the parent app.

How much screen time does Nowa involve?+

Nowa is built to be put down. Check-ins run about 10–15 minutes each, a few times through the day. Short and active, with no infinite scroll, no autoplay, no engagement mechanics. The goal is always to send your child back into the real world.

What happens if my child misses a day?+

Real life happens. Missing a day doesn't erase progress or create punishment, and the pet never dies. Left alone for a long time it may get sad or gently return to its home world, but it can always come back.

How does the parent app work?+

Set routines and see a plain-language summary of what your child practiced. Basic setup and routine tracking come with the device; full insights, advanced missions, and expert guidance are part of the optional Nowa+ subscription.

When will Nowa be available?+

Pre-orders are open now at $99, shipping October 2026. You can cancel your reservation anytime before it ships.

Questions about the pre-order itself — pricing, refunds, timing — are answered on the pre-order page.

Questions answered? Your spot is still open.

Reserve your Nowa for $99 →

Fully refundable until it ships·500 reservations only