Science & Tech · AI · 5 hrs ago
OKA unveils Mori, an AI robot lamp designed as a home companion
OKA has introduced Mori, a mushroom-shaped AI robot lamp designed to act as a quiet companion at home.
The nearly 12-inch device, made by a startup based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Shenzhen, China, uses a camera and microphones to respond to people and activity around it.
It can move its head and eyes, make soft sounds, react to music or television, and guide breathing exercises.
Mori is not a general-purpose voice assistant: it cannot control smart-home devices, play requested tracks or answer questions about the weather.
When its head is pressed down, it becomes a lamp and can play nature sounds, though access to those sounds requires a subscription.
The Founder’s Edition costs $649, while the standard edition is listed at $799; CNET also gives a later standard retail price of $849.
OKA says images and audio are processed on the device and discarded, while facial-recognition data is stored locally, and the company plans to make more experimental products in the future.
Oka has unveiled Mori, a mushroom-shaped home robot that combines an interactive AI companion with a lamp.
The device responds to people and its surroundings with movements and sounds, and can play calming audio and glow in different colors.
Oka says Mori processes images and audio on the device and discards them, but stores facial-recognition data locally to distinguish familiar faces.
Mori does not function as a general voice assistant and cannot control smart-home devices or play requested music.
The articles differ on the standard edition’s price: CNET lists $849, while Wired lists $799 and says subscription features are not included.
- Who
- Oka, also called OKA or One Kind Artifact, unveiled Mori.
- What
- Mori is an AI companion and lamp that reacts to people and its surroundings. It also plays calming sounds and glows in different colors.
- When
- Oka announced Mori on Thursday; the articles were published on October 22, 2026.
- Where
- It is designed for use in the home. Oka is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Shenzhen, China.
- Why
- Oka says Mori is intended to help reconnect people with nature and make being at home feel better.
CNET reviewer
WIRED reviewer
Value
CNET reviewer
CNET’s reviewer described Mori’s playful restraint and responsive personality positively.
WIRED reviewer
WIRED’s reviewer argued that Mori does little and questioned its value at the listed prices.
Function
CNET reviewer
CNET highlighted Mori’s contextual reactions and its use as a companion that blends into a living room.
WIRED reviewer
WIRED emphasized that Mori is not a voice assistant and cannot control smart lights, play requested Spotify tracks or answer questions about the weather.
Price and subscription
CNET reviewer
CNET listed a $649 Founder Edition, a $799 next preorder round and an $849 standard edition, with two years of subscription included.
WIRED reviewer
WIRED listed a $649 Founder’s Edition and a $799 standard edition, saying the standard price does not include subscription features.
A CNET reporter met Mori during a demonstration.
Oka announced Mori, according to CNET.
WIRED reported that the Founder’s Edition was available, with stock limited to a few hundred units.
- Height
- CNET says Mori is 10 inches tall; WIRED describes it as nearly 12 inches tall.
- Founder’s Edition
- $649, with two years of subscription service included, according to both articles.
- Standard edition
- CNET lists $849; WIRED lists $799 and says subscription features are not included.
- Subscription after included period
- CNET lists $17 per month or $80 per year.
- Company locations
- Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Shenzhen, China.
3 sources
What people are saying
There are certain relationships in this era we want to fix between humans and our surroundings—human with nature, human with one another—every product is an experience trying to reconnect some of those relationships
machine-like
feel better