For families

For the kid who answers in their own way.

You know what your child loves and how they tell you yes and no. Ninja Buddy tells jokes and stories and plays songs and games, one yes-or-no question at a time, and listens for a snap, a word, a switch or a tap. Your child gets 12 seconds to answer (you can set 6 to 30).

Get notified at launch See how it works

What it's like at home

Snap, speak, switch or tap

One snap for yes, two for no. Or a spoken word, a switch, or a tap on a big button. Buddy says what it heard ("One snap, that's a yes!") and is told to make its best guess at an unclear answer, not ask for a do-over.

It knows their world, because you told it

Their favorite things, pets and people. Write it yourself or pull it from a document you already have, like an IEP, and choose what Buddy should know.

Your family's voices and sounds

Record a hello and a "nice one!" from the people your child loves, plus home sounds like the dog or the doorbell. Buddy is told to play them at fitting moments and never pretend to be that person.

Siblings can play too

A brother, sister or friend from your child's people list can join joke and riddle rounds. Buddy's rules say your child goes first and it's never a contest. While they play, your child answers by snap, switch or on-screen button so two voices don't get mixed up (voice still counts if snaps are off).

Respect for their age

Buddy is told to talk to older kids and teens like the age they are, never babyish. Your child can pick their own celebration sound, from a drum fill or a guitar riff to, yes, a drum-and-fart combo.

Designed for low vision

A black screen, one big bright character, and everything important in sound. A two-finger tap makes Buddy say it again. Colored rings flash when Buddy hears an answer. The calm screen setting, suggested for seizures or light sensitivity, stops the flashing and keeps Buddy still.

Documents

Bring what you've already written

Documents you can try: an IEP, a therapy report, a care plan, a sitter's note, an "All about me" page or your own notes, as a PDF, a Word file, photos of pages or pasted text.

The words are read on your device first. When you tap Send, the full text goes once to Anthropic's Claude API, names and private details included, so the AI can suggest what Buddy should know. You approve each suggestion, shown with the words it came from, before it's added.

How document import works

You're in charge

A play session you supervise, never an "AI friend"

You shouldn't have to wonder what it will say. Buddy gets strict rules every session, the app enforces limits the AI can't override, and you can read every word afterward.

By default, the app asks "Do you want to play today?" before the AI is involved. A no ends the session.
Buddy is told never to claim feelings, call itself your child's friend, ask your child to stay, or say it will miss them.
The app never sends notifications or calls your child back to the screen.
Sessions end on their own after about 20 minutes (you can change it), 5 missed answers in a row or 5 quiet minutes. Goodbyes send your child to a real person: "Go tell Grandma what we played!"
You can read every session word for word. Buddy knows what you write or approve, plus short notes from past sessions that you can read and delete.
Hold-to-stop, hold-to-skip and hold-to-choose buttons let you step in without talking over your child.
No AI follows rules perfectly every time, which is why a grown-up stays in the room, close enough to hear and step in.

Safety & privacy

Beyond the screen

Help grandparents, sitters and new teachers understand your child

In one 2024 study, 88% of those asked described stigma from people who "just sort of go, 'oh she can't talk.'" The researchers recommended training the people around the child. Teach someone your child's signals is a three-minute practice designed for that: Buddy coaches a grandparent, sitter or new teacher to ask one yes-or-no question, wait, and read the answer.

You get a one-page card and a 20-second audio clip about how your child answers, to print, text or tuck in a backpack. Both work without the device.

Your child's team

Something useful to bring to the next meeting

After each session you can see how each answer came (snap, spoken word, switch or tap), the seconds to the first sign of an answer, and whether it came before any cue, like Buddy's hint "Yes… or no?". Weekly charts show the trend, and you can share every answer as a spreadsheet file with your child's therapist or IEP team.

Buddy's own words appear only as the question, so they're never logged as your child's answer. But the app can't tell whose snap, "yes" or press it got: if someone answers for your child, it's logged as your child's. For a true picture, others nearby should stay quiet and hands-off during your child's turn.

A play app, not therapy. It's designed to work alongside your child's communication device or app (AAC), therapists and school team, never to replace them. It draws on techniques speech therapists use, but Ninja Buddy itself hasn't been studied, and most of its features haven't been tried with children yet. What the evidence does and doesn't say.

Questions from families

My child doesn't speak. Will this work for them?

Talking is never required. If your child can hear speech and answer yes or no with a snap, a switch or a tap, Buddy can play with them. If they do use their voice, Buddy celebrates it.

My child can't snap. What else is there?

A spoken yes or no, a Bluetooth switch (the kind that works like a keyboard key; we haven't tested particular models yet), or big YES and NO buttons on the screen. You choose which are on, and can change them on a hard day.

My child answers with a nod, a sign, a look or their AAC device. Can they play?

Not directly. There's no camera, so Buddy can't see a nod, a sign or a look, and we haven't tried it with AAC devices that speak out loud. A switch or the big on-screen buttons may be the closest fit. Tell us what would work for your child.

How old should my child be?

Old enough to enjoy jokes, stories and games. There's no upper limit; it's designed with teens in mind too.

Will it make my child attached to an AI?

We designed it not to. Buddy is told never to claim feelings or friendship, and the app's hard limits are listed under You're in charge. There's no memory designed to deepen a bond, only short notes you can read and delete. No AI follows rules perfectly every time, which is why a grown-up stays nearby.

Can I see what Buddy said?

Yes. Every session is stored on your device word for word, with how your child answered each question. To run a session, Anthropic's Claude API gets Buddy's instructions (including what you've written about your child) and the conversation so far, with short text of your child's answers, never audio. Afterward, the full transcript is sent once so the AI can write short notes. Where your child's information goes.

Should I import my child's IEP?

Only if you're comfortable sharing it. Tapping Send shares the full text (up to about 60 pages), the file name and what you've already written about your child with Anthropic's Claude API, once. The AI is told to leave scores, medical details, last names and school names out of its suggestions, but they're still in what was sent. To send less, paste only the parts about what your child loves, how they communicate and what helps. Import hasn't been tried on a real IEP yet, so check each suggestion before adding it.

Will it cost anything?

Yes, it will be a subscription. Buddy's replies are written by an AI model, which costs money every time; the subscription covers that plus a small profit to keep improving the app. Family is $9.99 a month or $69.99 a year, with a 14-day free trial and a half-price hardship rate. Your child's notes, transcripts and answer log will never be behind a paywall. See the plans.