To celebrate, New York cat lovers can head to Grand Central's Vanderbilt Hall on October 6 and press a button to feed an adoptable cat

ST. LOUIS, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Petivity, powered by Purina, is introducing the Smart Feeder for Cats. Using AI-enabled facial recognition, the smart feeder goes beyond automated feeding to give cat parents real visibility into their cat's eating habits, even in multi-cat households. To celebrate, Petivity is bringing its newest pet technology to New York City this October, with an experience that lets cat lovers feed shelter cats in real-time with the press of a button.

"How and when your cat eats may matter just as much as what they eat," said Kristin Slater, Petivity Product Development Lead. "Obesity is one of the most common, preventable health issues in cats, often because parents don't know how much their cat is eating. The Smart Feeder for Cats translates feeding time into health insights — and New Yorkers can see it in action at our Press to Feed event."

A New Standard for Feeding Time

The Smart Feeder for Cats is the newest addition to Petivity's lineup of products that help pet parents move from reactive care to proactive care. Its sensor technology and built-in camera power AI-enabled facial recognition to learn the unique feeding behaviors of up to five cats. Precisely tracking portion consumption, eating frequency and feeding patterns over time, the feeder gives cat parents a clearer picture of their cat's health, turning everyday feeding time into a source of real, actionable health insight. Petivity refined the design through more than 10 iterations, building the feeder for cats' comfort and cat parents' confidence.

The Smart Feeder for Cats was built for effortless, convenient feeding, including:

• Remote feeding control, custom schedules, and real-time video check-ins through the Petivity app
• Alerts when kibble is running low
• A dishwasher-safe food container and kibble carousel and bowl
• A shallow bowl designed to prevent whisker fatigue, with a quiet, low-profile shape suited to cats' natural eating posture

The Data Behind the Design

"We spent years building a robust feeding behavior dataset, manually reviewing tens of thousands of real-world feeding sessions and hours of video to make sure this feeder truly understands cat behavior," said Dr. Natalie Langenfeld-McCoy, Purina Data Scientist. "That's what allows the Smart Feeder for Cats to catch changes that may otherwise go unnoticed."

The feeder is powered by AI trained on more than 21,000 real-world feeding sessions, over 1,400 hours of video, and images of more than 15,000 cats — the data that helps it recognize each cat individually and detect subtle shifts in behavior that may warrant a closer look. During product development, 99.5% of cats were happy to eat from the feeder!¹

As the newest addition to the Petivity ecosystem, the Smart Feeder for Cats also pairs with the Petivity Smart Litter Box Monitor, empowering cat parents to track consumption and elimination side by side so every conversation with their vet starts with real data.

The Press to Feed Experience

To mark the Smart Feeder for Cats launch, Petivity is inviting cat lovers to see the technology in action in New York City with one simple instruction: Press to Feed a Cat. Here's what to expect:

• When: Tuesday, October 6, from 10 a.m.–7 p.m. EDT
• Where: Vanderbilt Hall, Grand Central Terminal
• What: Press the big red button, and a Petivity Smart Feeder for Cats at a partner animal shelter or rescue will dispense a real meal to a real, adoptable cat. And you get to see each cat fed in real time, right on the big screen.
• Participating Shelters: Atlanta Humane Society (Atlanta, GA), Cat Adoption Team (Sherwood, OR), and Tree House Humane Society (Chicago, IL)

The Petivity Smart Feeder for Cats is available now for $149.99 at Amazon, Chewy and Petivity.com.

About Nestlé Purina PetCare
Nestlé Purina PetCare creates richer lives for pets and the people who love them. Founded in 1894, Purina has helped dogs and cats live longer, healthier lives by offering scientifically based nutritional innovations.

Purina manufactures some of the world's most trusted and popular pet care products, including Dog Chow, Purina ONE, Pro Plan, Friskies and Tidy Cats. Our more than 11,000 U.S. associates take pride in our trusted pet food, treat and litter brands that feed 46 million dogs and 68 million cats every year. Nearly 500 Purina scientists, veterinarians, and pet care experts ensure our commitment to unsurpassed quality and nutrition.

Over the past five years, Purina has contributed more than $150 million towards organizations that bring, and keep, people and pets together, as well as those that help our communities and environment thrive.

Purina is part of Nestlé, a global leader in Nutrition, Health and Wellness. For more information, visit purina.com or subscribe here to get the latest Purina news.

¹Acceptance defined as a cat voluntarily eating from the feeder during product development.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/petivity-launches-smart-feeder-for-cats-with-a-nyc-experience-that-feeds-real-shelter-cats-302883748.html

SOURCE Petivity