{
  "id": 1551820,
  "title": "Internet-Connected Pet Feeders Go Down, Leaving Kitties Hungry",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/17/internet-connected-pet-feeders-go-down-leaving-kitties-hungry",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-17T20:00:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Futurism",
    "slug": "futurism",
    "url": "https://futurism.com/future-society/internet-connected-pet-feeders-go-down-cats-hungry"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A recent outage affecting internet-connected pet feeders from company Petlibro has left cat owners frustrated and worried about their furry companions' meals. These \"smart\" feeders, which require a constant internet connection and regular software updates, are becoming increasingly common in households. However, when an outage began on August 11, it caused scheduled feedings to stop working, leaving some owners in the dark about whether their cats were being fed or not.\n\nOne Reddit user reported that their pet feeder remained offline, despite Petlibro's claims that the service had been restored. Another user, who was on vacation, admitted to being unable to monitor their cats' feeding schedules due to the outage, leaving them uncertain about their pets' well-being. Petlibro CEO York Wu acknowledged that the outage affected some customers' devices but maintained that scheduled feedings should continue without an internet connection. However, this claim was met with skepticism from disgruntled customers, who accused the company of downplaying the severity of the issue and not providing adequate communication during the outage.\n\nPetlibro has since acknowledged the primary and secondary issues causing the outage and promised to scale up its customer support team. Despite this, users remain unsatisfied, accusing the company of insincerely downplaying the incident's severity. The incident highlights the growing trend of requiring internet-connected services for everyday appliances, even those that seem unrelated to technology. As society becomes more reliant on connected devices, concerns about their reliability and the consequences of their failures continue to rise.",
  "summary": "\"I am on vacation and cannot tell if my cats are being fed or not.\" The post Internet-Connected Pet Feeders Go Down, Leaving Kitties Hungry appeared first on Futurism .",
  "key_points": [
    "Petlibro outage left cat feeders offline on August 11",
    "Owners concerned about cats' meals during disruption",
    "CEO claims feedings would continue without internet"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}