Today, October 14, is most notable for being the day when Windows 10 reaches its end of life, but it’s also Global Cat Day. One of those may leave you feeling sad, while the other feline great (sorry).
To mark the cat day, Opera has introduced a playful feline companion within the interface of Opera Air, the company’s mindfulness-focused browser, and also launched a project to help street cats in Istanbul, often (and for good reason — they’re everywhere) called the cat capital of the world.
Opera Air’s new mindful companion will appear occasionally as users browse. The gray and white cat, often seen with a teal ball of yarn, stretches, sleeps, and even meditates in different corners of the browser.
Opera describes its presence as subtle, intended to remind users to pause and breathe, while also adding a lighthearted touch to the browsing experience.
Much like a real cat, it will come and go as it pleases but doesn’t require feeding. It also, unlike my two cats, won’t walk over the keyboard when you’re typing.
Opera Air’s new cat
Opera Air is built around wellbeing and focus, and features integrated mindfulness tools like Boosts and Take a Break. The new cat companion extends that concept by introducing playfulness and calm into the browser environment.
The cat first appears in the lower-right corner of the browser window and clicking on it will cause it to react in various ways, while right-clicking will allow you to hide it.
“The goal of Opera Air is to improve our users’ wellbeing through free mindfulness tools that are always just a click away,” said Mohamed Salah Mourad, Senior Director of Product at Opera Air. “But we also want to have some fun. There’s no better embodiment of the two than a cat, and now this one — formerly a stray — has a home with Opera Air.”
Opera has not yet named its digital cat, but it plans to ask the Opera Air community for suggestions. It’s a cat in a browser, so my money is on Tabby.
To extend the celebration beyond the screen, Opera Air has partnered with HAÇİKO, Turkey’s leading animal welfare NGO, and the municipality of Sarıyer to create the country’s largest “Cat District.”
For every ten new Opera Air users in Turkey on October 16, the company will donate one cat house to the initiative, providing safe shelters for street cats as colder months approach.
“Mindfulness aims to help practitioners achieve inner tranquility, but it also has a broader social goal: making the world a kinder, better place. And so we’re delighted to take that spirit of Opera Air offline, helping both cats and humans breathe a little easier on the streets of Istanbul,” continued Mourad.
Opera Air is available to download now.
What do you think about Opera Air’s mindful cat? Let us know in the comments.
