Technology

Ring’s AI Search Party helps find lost dogs faster

Published

1 month ago

February 9, 2026

Ring’s AI Search Party helps find lost dogs faster

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Losing a dog can make your stomach drop and your thoughts race. First, you check the yard. Then you walk the block. After that, you refresh local Facebook groups again and again, hoping for a sign.

Now, Ring wants to turn your entire neighborhood into extra eyes with help from AI. Its Search Party feature uses nearby cameras to spot lost dogs, and it is now available nationwide to anyone who needs help finding a missing pet. For the first time, you do not need to own a Ring camera to use it.

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10 SMART DEVICES THAT MAKE PET PARENTING EASIER

Ring says its Search Party tool has helped reunite more than one lost dog per day across the U.S. (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

What is Ring’s Search Party feature?

Search Party is a community-powered tool that helps reunite lost dogs with their families faster. When someone reports a missing dog in the Ring app, nearby outdoor Ring cameras scan recent footage using AI. The goal stays simple. Find dogs that look like the one reported missing. If a possible match shows up, the camera owner receives an alert with a photo of the lost dog and a video clip. From there, they can ignore the alert or step in to help. As a result, sharing always stays optional, and pressure stays off.

How Search Party actually works

Here is what happens once a lost dog post goes live.

First, a pet owner posts a lost dog alert in the Ring app
Next, nearby outdoor Ring cameras scan footage using AI
Then, camera owners receive alerts if a match appears
After that, neighbors can share video clips or snapshots
Finally, messages and calls stay private with no phone numbers shared

Search Party now works without a Ring camera

This update changes everything. Previously, only people with Ring devices could use Search Party. Now, anyone in the U.S. can download the free Ring Neighbors app, register and post a lost dog alert. Because of that shift, dog owners can tap into an existing camera network without buying hardware or paying for a subscription. At the same time, neighbors without cameras can still help by spreading alerts and watching for sightings.

Lost pets already represent one of the most common post types in the Ring Neighbors app, with more than 1 million lost or found pet reports shared last year alone. With an estimated 60 million U.S. households owning at least one dog, the potential reach of Search Party is massive.

How to start a Search Party for your dog

Getting started is pretty straightforward. Download the Ring app for free in the App Store or Google Play if you don’t already have it. Anyone can create a Lost Dog Post in the Ring app.

If the post qualifies, the app walks you through activating Search Party step by step. You share photos and basic details about your dog. Once active, nearby cameras begin scanning automatically.

Search Party alerts are temporary. When you start a Search Party in the Ring app, it runs for a few hours at a time. If your dog has not been found and remains missing, you need to renew the Search Party or start a new one so nearby cameras continue scanning for matches.

When you find your dog, you can update the post to let the neighborhood know the search is over.

AI TECHNOLOGY HELPS REUNITE LOST DOGS WITH THEIR OWNERS

A missing dog alert in the Ring app triggers nearby outdoor cameras to scan footage for possible matches using AI. (Photo by EZEQUIEL BECERRA / AFP via Getty Images)

What happens when a Ring camera spots your lost dog

If your outdoor Ring camera spots a possible match, you stay in control the entire time. You receive an alert with a photo of the missing dog and a clip from your camera. From there, you decide what happens next. You can ignore the alert or help by sharing footage or contacting the owner through the app. Throughout the process, your phone number stays private.

Ring says Search Party has already delivered dramatic results. In one case, Kylee from Wichita, Kansas, was reunited with her mixed-breed dog, Nyx, in just 15 minutes after he slipped through a small hole under a backyard fence. A neighbor’s Ring camera captured video of Nyx and shared it through the app, giving Kylee her first and only lead. “I was blown away,” Kylee said, noting that even dogs with microchips often go unrecognized if they lack a collar. She credits that shared video for bringing Nyx home so quickly, adding that she does not think she would have found him without the Ring app.

Nyx is far from the only success story. Ring says Search Party has helped reunite more than one lost dog per day, including dogs like Xochitl in Houston, Truffle in Bakersfield, Lainey in Surprise, Zola in Ellenwood, Toby in Las Vegas, Blu in Erlanger, Zeus in Chicago and Coco in Stockton, with more reunions happening every day.

How to turn Ring’s Search Party on or off

Search Party remains optional and adjustable. You can enable or disable it at any time inside the Ring app.

Start by opening the Ring app and heading to the main dashboard.
Then tap the menu icon.
Go to Control Center and select Search Party.
From there, you can turn Search for Lost Pets on or off for each camera.

Ring commits $1M to help shelters reunite lost dogs

Alongside the expansion, Ring is committing $1 million to equip animal shelters with camera systems. The company aims to support up to 4,000 shelters across the U.S. By bringing shelters into the network, Ring hopes dogs picked up by shelters can reconnect with their owners faster. In addition, the company already works with groups like Petco Love and Best Friends Animal Society and says it remains open to new partnerships.

Ring is also encouraging animal shelters and organizations to reach out directly about collaboration opportunities.

Privacy concerns remain around Ring’s Search Party feature

Search Party launched last fall with some pushback. Critics raised concerns about privacy and Ring’s broader ties to law enforcement. Ring says participation stays voluntary and footage sharing remains optional. Still, the feature turns on by default for compatible outdoor cameras, which has drawn attention. Even so, the company appears confident and is promoting Search Party in a Super Bowl commercial.

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PEOPLE LET THEIR PETS DECIDE WHO THEY DATE, NEW SURVEY SUGGESTS

Ring’s new Search Party feature uses artificial intelligence and neighborhood cameras to help locate lost dogs, even for users without Ring devices. (Photo by Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Kurt’s key takeaways

Search Party taps into something familiar. Neighbors helping neighbors during a stressful moment. By opening the feature to everyone, Ring removes a major barrier and increases the chances of fast reunions. Whether this tool becomes a staple or sparks deeper privacy debates will depend on how communities use it.

Would you want neighborhood cameras helping to find your lost dog, or does that feel like too much surveillance? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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This article was written by Fox News staff.

Related Topics:artificial intelligence Featured Pets Technologies

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Technology

AI influencer awards season is upon us

Published

8 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

First came the AI beauty pageant. Then the AI music contests. Now, there is an award for AI Personality of the Year — perhaps the inevitable next step for the AI influencer economy as it transforms from quirky novelty into a serious and lucrative industry.

The contest, a joint venture between generative AI studio OpenArt and AI-powered creator platform Fanvue, with backing from AI voice company ElevenLabs, opens on Monday and runs for a month. The organizers said it is intended to “celebrate the creative talent ‘behind’ AI Influencers” and recognize their growing commercial and cultural clout.

Contestants will compete for a total prize fund of $20,000, which will be split between an overall winner and individual categories of fitness, lifestyle, comedian, music and dance entertainer, and fictional cartoon, anime, or fantasy personality. Victors will be celebrated at an event in May that the organizers are dubbing the “‘Oscars’ for AI personalities.”

To enter, you must develop your AI influencer on OpenArt’s platform and submit it at www.AIpersonality.ai. You’ll be asked for social media handles across TikTok, X, YouTube, and Instagram, as well as the story behind the character, your motivations for creating it, and details of any brand work.

Among those assessing contestants are 13‑time Emmy‑winning comedy writer Gil Rief, the creators of Spanish AI model Aitana Lopez, and Christopher “Topher” Townsend, the MAGA rapper behind AI-generated gospel singer Solomon Ray. According to a copy of the judges’ briefing seen by The Verge, contestants will be scored on four criteria: quality, social clout, brand appeal, and the inspiration behind the avatar. Specific points include reliably engaging with followers, portraying a consistent look across social channels, accurate details like having the “right number of fingers and thumbs,” and having “an authentic narrative” behind the avatar.

The contest is open to established creators and novices alike, though existing AI influencers will still need to submit material produced on OpenArt’s platform, Matt Jones, head of brand at Fanvue, told The Verge.

Despite being designed to celebrate creators of virtual influencers, Jones said that entrants don’t need to publicly identify themselves. “If a person who created this amazing piece of work wants nothing to do with the press or to expose themselves or to have their name out there, that’s obviously fine,” he said. “There would be no need to thrust anybody into the limelight here. We would just celebrate the piece of work.”

That creators can remain anonymous feels odd for a contest judging authenticity, particularly in an AI influencer ecosystem built on fictional people, fake personas, and fabricated backstories. That same anonymity has also helped grifts flourish with little accountability, from the AI white nationalist rapper Danny Bones to MAGA fantasy girl Jessica Foster.

There’s familiar baggage too, including persistent questions about originality, whether AI-generated work, or even a likeness, has been lifted from real creators, and whether these tools simply reproduce the same old biases in synthetic form. Organizer Fanvue has already faced criticism for this in the past: in 2024, a Guardian columnist described its “Miss AI” beauty pageant as something that “take(s) every toxic gendered beauty norm and bundle(s) them up into a completely unrealistic package.”

To Fanvue’s Jones, creators inevitably leave something of themselves in the AI characters they make. “You can’t help but put a little bit of yourself into the stories that you tell and the characters that you make,” he said, urging creators to “lean into that.” The idea feels at home in the influencer economy: not strictly real, but a form of synthetic authenticity the internet already knows how to handle.

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Robert Hart

Technology

Amazon Health AI brings a doctor to your pocket

Published

8 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

Amazon Health AI brings a doctor to your pocket

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Most people have had this moment. You feel a strange symptom, open your phone and start searching online. Within minutes, you are deep in medical forums reading worst-case scenarios. By the end, you are either terrified or more confused than when you started.

Health care should feel clearer than that. Yet for many of us, it rarely does. Appointments take weeks. Medical records are hard to understand. You often have to repeat the same health history at every visit. Insurance rules feel like a maze.

According to the American Academy of Physician Associates, many Americans say navigating the healthcare system feels overwhelming and they wish doctors had more time to listen. Now, a new tool from Amazon hopes to change that experience. It is called Amazon Health AI.

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$163K IN FAKE MEDICAL BILL CHARGES, AI UNCOVERS IT FOR YOU

Amazon Health AI lets you ask health questions, review records and connect with care directly through the Amazon app. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

What Amazon Health AI actually does

Amazon Health AI, available at amazon.com/health-ai, acts as a digital health assistant that can answer medical questions and help guide you through your care. The tool lives inside the Amazon app and website.

You start by typing a health question into a chat box. From there, the system can:

Explain lab results in plain language
Review symptoms and suggest next steps
Help schedule care with a provider
Assist with prescription renewals
Recommend relevant health products if asked

Health AI connects directly with clinicians from Amazon One Medical when professional care is needed. You can message a provider, start a video visit or schedule an in-person appointment. The goal is to make getting care simpler. Instead of spending time searching for appointments or jumping between different apps, you can move from a question to a provider more quickly. If symptoms suggest a possible emergency, the system may advise you to contact emergency services, such as calling 911.

Amazon is gradually rolling the Health AI tool out to U.S. customers, and availability varies by location.

CyberGuy reached out to Amazon for comment about the new service. Andrew Diamond, Ph.D., M.D., chief medical officer at Amazon One Medical, said the goal is to reduce some of the everyday frustrations people face when navigating healthcare.

“Nearly two-thirds of Americans feel overwhelmed by the healthcare system and wish their doctors had more time to understand their concerns,” Diamond said. “Health AI is designed to handle the logistical and informational work that creates friction in healthcare, so patients and providers can spend more time on what matters most: the human relationship at the heart of healing.”

How Amazon Health AI uses your medical history

Health AI becomes more useful when it understands your medical history.

With permission, the system can access information such as:

Past diagnoses
Medications
Lab results
Doctor’s notes

This data flows through a secure national network called the Health Information Exchange. Health AI can access records from hundreds of thousands of providers nationwide once permission is granted.

For example, imagine someone with asthma develops a cough during flu season. A generic search might treat that symptom like any other cough. Health AI can look at your history and ask follow-up questions based on your specific risk factors.

Health AI can provide general information about someone else’s health question, but personalized answers are limited to the medical history of the account holder.

That context helps the system provide more relevant guidance. Still, the assistant does not replace doctors. When the situation requires medical judgment, it connects you with a real clinician.

CHATGPT COULD MISS YOUR SERIOUS MEDICAL EMERGENCY, NEW STUDY SUGGESTS

Health AI can help explain lab results, check symptoms and connect you with care through your phone. (Amazon)

How Amazon connects AI with real medical care

The service works closely with Amazon One Medical providers. Prescription renewals can also move through the system, with requests sent to a One Medical provider who reviews the request before approval. You can fill prescriptions through Amazon Pharmacy or another pharmacy you prefer. This approach helps reduce the steps people often face when trying to get care. Instead of spending time searching for appointments or jumping between different apps, you can move from a question to a provider more quickly.

Special access for Prime members

Amazon is also adding a limited introductory benefit. Eligible members of Amazon Prime can receive up to five free message-based consultations with a One Medical provider.

Neil Lindsay, senior vice president of Amazon Health Services, said the goal is to make care easier to access through the tools people already use. “Eligible Prime member accounts get up to five free direct message care consultations with a One Medical provider for any of the 30 common conditions,” Lindsay said.

These visits cover common conditions, including:

Colds and flu
Allergies and acid reflux
Pink eye and UTIs
Hair loss and skin care

Outside the promotion, message or telehealth visits typically cost about $29. A full One Medical membership provides broader virtual care and costs less for Prime members than for non-members.

How Amazon says it protects health data

Health information raises serious privacy questions. Amazon says Health AI runs inside a HIPAA-compliant environment with strong encryption and strict access controls. According to the company, personal health data is not used to sell ads. Amazon also says protected health information from One Medical and Amazon Pharmacy is not used for advertising or sold to third parties.

The system also includes safety guardrails. If the AI cannot confidently answer a question, it directs you to a human provider. Behind the scenes, the technology runs on Amazon’s AI platform called Amazon Bedrock.

Amazon also emphasized that Health AI was designed alongside medical professionals rather than built purely as a technology product.

“This isn’t a chatbot with a healthcare skin,” said Prakash Bulusu, chief technology officer at Amazon Health Services. “It’s a system designed from the ground up to be personalized, trustworthy and useful.”

Bulusu said he personally tested the system with his own health data, and it surfaced lab work he had forgotten to complete after a physical exam.

CHATGPT HEALTH PROMISES PRIVACY FOR HEALTH CONVERSATIONS

You can ask Health AI about symptoms and receive guidance before deciding whether to seek medical care. (Amazon)

Why Amazon believes AI belongs in healthcare

Millions of people already search Amazon for vitamins, blood pressure monitors and health products. The company believes AI can help guide those searches and connect them with medical advice. Amazon also partnered with major health systems, including the Cleveland Clinic and Rush University System for Health, to create smoother referrals between primary care and specialists. The idea is continuity. You should not feel like you are starting from scratch every time you see a new provider.

What this means for you

Tools like Health AI show how quickly artificial intelligence is moving into everyday health decisions. For patients, the potential benefits are clear. Faster answers. Simpler records. Easier access to doctors.

Yet it also raises big questions about privacy, data control and how much we rely on automated systems for health advice. AI can help people understand their health. But the human doctor still plays the absolute most important role. The challenge will be finding the right balance.

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Kurt’s key takeaways

Healthcare can be frustrating. Long waits, confusing records and disconnected systems often leave you feeling lost. Amazon believes AI can help guide you through that process. If the technology works as promised, it could help millions of us understand our health faster and reach care sooner. Still, any system that handles sensitive medical information must earn trust over time. That trust will depend on transparency, security and how responsibly companies use personal health data.

Would you feel comfortable letting an AI assistant review your medical history and guide your health decisions? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Technology

Crimson Desert dev apologizes for use of AI art

Published

20 hours ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

Crimson Desert dev apologizes for use of AI art

Reviews of Crimson Desert have been mixed, but the bigger issue for the game has been the discovery of what appeared to be AI-generated assets in the final release. Now the developer has acknowledged that AI art was indeed used during the game’s creation, but says that it was intended to be replaced before release. In a statement on X, the company said it was conducting a “comprehensive audit” to identify and replace any AI-generated content.

The company apologized for both its inclusion in the final release and for not being more transparent about its use during development. “We should have clearly disclosed our use of AI,” it said.

The use of generative AI in gaming has become a hot-button issue of the last couple of years as it’s made its way into several high-profile titles. While some large studios have embraced it, many smaller developers have revolted against the trend, proudly proclaiming their games to be “AI free.”