While major mobile manufacturers focus on foldable screens and advanced AI chips, MWC 2026 also provided a glimpse of what seems to be the next step in wearable computing – for pets. GlocalMe (under the uCloudlink group) presented the PetPhone during our visit to the exhibition, a device it defines as "the first smartphone for animals." This is not just another standard tracking tag, but hardware that includes a global cellular communication module, speaker, and microphone, intended to bridge the emotional gap when owners are away from home.
The main innovation that drew attention at the exhibition booths is the independent "dialing" mechanism. Using AI behavior recognition technology, the device can detect a specific series of actions – such as three consecutive jumps within six seconds – and translate them into an incoming call on the owner's phone. The goal, according to the company, is to allow pets suffering from separation anxiety to actively make contact and hear the owner's voice to calm down.
In addition to voice capabilities, the system includes support for PetCam, a tiny 1080p POV camera that attaches to the collar and allows live streaming of the pet’s "point of view." Technically, the device relies on CloudSIM technology, which allows connection to cellular networks in more than 200 countries without the need for a physical SIM card, and integrates six layers of location technologies (GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and active radar) to ensure maximum accuracy even in dense urban environments.
Alongside the impressive capabilities, the business model reflects the prevailing trend in the industry: shifting to product-as-a-service (SaaS). The device itself is priced at about NIS 106, but using the advanced communication and tracking features requires a monthly subscription of about NIS 8. For mobile operators and companies in the field, this represents a new growth engine in the global Pet-Tech market, currently estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars, with the goal of turning the pet into another "user" in the family communication plan.
"If until now we thought that cellular communication connected humans, at the mobile conference in Barcelona we see how technology also connects us with our pets," said Dror Bahat, marketing VP at Pelephone. "The new device allows viewing pets in real time, tracking their location, and speaking to them remotely in a way that gives owners a sense of security and control that did not exist before. Ultimately, this is a natural and expected use of the cellular capabilities we have today, bringing real value to the daily lives of many people," Bahat added.
The author attended the exhibition as a guest of Pelephone.