This week: Baidu patents AI pet translator, Wag! Q1 loss widens

Happy Friday! This week brought lots of interesting news on the corporate front: first-quarter earnings from Wag!, Chewy’s CFO David Reeder’s departure and Mars’ new Royal Canin facility in Lewisburg, Ohio.

We also interviewed The Wagington, Singapore’s first luxury pet hotel, to see how they stay ahead in an increasingly competitive market. Check it out here.

Also, two interesting developments from China, the world’s second-largest pet market after the United States. In a first, China has officially launched a dedicated pet terminal, at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport.

And second, China’s largest search engine Baidu has filed a patent for its AI-powered tool to decipher animal vocalisations. Baidu joins a growing number of initiatives trying to use AI to understand and potentially communicate with animals, including Earth Species Project, Zoolingua and Interspecies Internet.

Enjoy!

IN TODAY’S EDITION

🇺🇸 Mars builds opens new US$450-million Royal Canin facility in Ohio ● Mars is opening a new US$450-million Royal Canin facility in Lewisburg, Ohio. The facility will be Royal Canin’s largest dry pet food factory globally.  

🇺🇸 Central Garden & Pet posts Q1 earnings ● Central Garden & Pet reported a 3% rise year on year in first-quarter revenue to US$656 million, while net income was US$14 million, versus compared US$0.4 million in the prior year. 

🇺🇸 Chewy CFO David Reeder to leave Chewy ● Chewy’s chief financial officer David Reeder will leave the company in several months to return to the semiconductor industry as a Chief Executive Officer. 

🇺🇸 Wag! net loss widened in Q1 ● Wag! reported first-quarter revenue of US$15.2 million compared to US$23.2 million a year earlier. Wag!’s first-quarter net loss was US$4.9 million, versus US$4.2 million a year earlier. Wag! said the results were “slightly ahead of our expectations on profitability and in line with expectations on revenue”.

🇦🇺 Mars brand Schmackos partners with Bega in Australia ● Mars brand Schmackos has partnered with with Bega in Australia to present SCHMACKOS STRAPZ, inspired by Bega Peanut Butter.

PRODUCT NEWS

🇺🇸 Vital Essentials launches Soft Nibs ● Vital Essentials, Carnivore Meat Company’s flagship brand, has launched Soft Nibs for dogs and cats.

🇨🇳 Chinese search engine Baidu files patent for AI-powered pet language ‘translator’ ● Chinese search engine company Baidu has filed a patent to China Intellectual Property Administration for its AI-powered system to convert animal vocalisations into human language.

🇸🇬 Bark Chor Mee anyone? Singapore’s pets are eating more like people ● Pet-safe versions of popular Singaporean dishes are being created for dogs.

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SPOTLIGHT: CHINA’S FIRST PET AIRPORT TERMINAL

China just hit a major milestone in premium pet services: its first-ever airport terminal exclusively for pets has opened at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport.

Located in southern China, the new terminal caters to jet-setting cats and dogs with dedicated check-in counters, quarantine facilities, and other premium amenities.

The move makes a lot of sense for China, the world’s second-largest pet market, where pets now outnumber toddlers.

With this launch, Guangzhou joins an exclusive club of airports around the world that treat pets like VIPs:

• JFK, New York (The ARK): A 178,000-square-foot standalone terminal designed exclusively for animals. It offers luxury boarding, veterinary services, quarantine facilities, and fun amenities like splash pools and grooming salons.

• Frankfurt (Lufthansa Animal Lounge): A 4,000-square-metre terminal with specialised staff, veterinary services, and climate-controlled environments. It handles over 100,000 animals annually, including pets, horses and birds.

• Calgary (International Animal Lounge): A 10,000-square-foot terminal with pet boarding and daycare.

At Luxury Pet Care News, we welcome anything that can make air travel easier for companion animals (and their humans!).

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