The Journal du Geek guide for Christmas 2026 reviews five toys equipped with artificial intelligence, from screen-free speakers to a furry robot. Purchase prices range from €49.90 for the Kidyprinter AI to €399 for the Moflin.
Speakers and Storytellers
Compagnon, a “Knowledge Box” imagined and designed in France, is aimed at 8-15 year olds and is voice-activated: the child holds a button and asks their question. Sold for €99.90, the speaker assembles responses via the APIs of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Perplexity, and offers no direct internet access. A Wi-Fi connection is required for its AI features. The parental app sends a weekly summary and allows consultation of full transcripts.
Mallow, presented as a French startup that raised €11 million, offers an interactive story speaker with figurines for 4-10 year olds, sold for €119.99 with the Zorp figurine. It combines at least ten AI models, including Mistral AI, but the AI does not write the story plots, which are designed by children’s authors and narrative designers. There is no button: a green light turns on during listening. Each additional figurine costs €19.99.
CloudiKids, sold for €89.99 for ages 3-12, never listens to the child, lacking a microphone and camera. The AI runs in the app installed on an adult’s smartphone, who creates a personalized story with the child before transferring it via Bluetooth to the toy. Each story can be re-read and modified by the parent. The Cloudi Starter subscription costs €4.99 per month or €44.99 per year, for about 17 stories per month.
Drawing and Non-Verbal Companionship
The Kidyprinter AI, from the Belgian brand Kidywolf, does not speak and simply draws. This 200-gram thermal printer, intended for children aged 6 and up, transforms a spoken idea into a black and white printed illustration. Sold for €49.90 with no subscription, it uses thermal paper sold for €9.90 for five rolls, allowing about 300 prints. Kidywolf does not specify the image generation model used, and the device does not store requests or drawings in memory.
The Moflin, developed by Casio with the Japanese startup Vanguard Industries, is presented as an emotional companion rather than a toy. This small furry robot, sold for €399, does not speak and uses no language model. Its behavioral AI starts from eight basic emotions and shapes a personality over about fifty days, depending on how it is cared for. Casio states it contains neither a camera nor audio recording, and it functions without an internet connection. It arrived in France on October 19th.
