I’m not a huge believer in horoscopes or fortune-telling, but I do enjoy reading those random fortune cookie sayings. I also like those “screenshot your fortune” or “tap to see your horoscope for today” posts on Instagram. So when I saw TOBI and how simple but fun this little accessory is, I knew I’d want one if it ever becomes an actual product I can buy.
TOBI is a concept for a Tamagotchi-like device that gives you random one-line fortune messages every time you press the button. Rather than just a machine spewing out these lines, it is a keyring-sized device designed to have a personality and be your “friend,” giving you advice or horoscopes whenever you need some random motivation.
Designer: YuJung Jung
This “cyber friend” comes in a compact oval design that can fit into your wallet, bag, or even clip onto a belt loop. Just hold the button for a couple of seconds and it will introduce itself to you, then give you the one line you may be looking for to kickstart your day. There are no additional features, just a message whenever boredom or curiosity strikes. Instead of reaching for your phone and doom-scrolling, you just press the button and get your one line.
The renders show that it will come in different colors to match your preference. The screen that shows the message takes up about a third of the surface. It scrolls horizontally in a computer-like font, just like unfurling a slip of paper from a fortune cookie. Even though it’s just a keyring, it’s designed to feel like a little companion you’ll want to keep close, like a pocket-sized pet, except you don’t need to feed it or keep it alive.
What makes TOBI stand out from the sea of minimalist gadgets being designed right now is the emotional intent behind it. Seoul-based industrial designer YuJung Jung didn’t set out to build another piece of tech. The goal was to create something that sits closer to a charm or a lucky trinket than an actual device, the kind of object you carry not because you need it, but because it means something to you, or at the very least, makes you smile. Jung even developed the proportions through repeated sketches, and the familiar metal keyring was a deliberate choice, one that places TOBI squarely in the same category as the amulets and lucky charms people have carried for centuries. That’s a surprisingly rare thing to aim for in the world of product design, and it’s exactly what makes TOBI feel so different.
There’s also something quietly rebellious about the whole concept. TOBI is deliberately, almost stubbornly, simple. In a time when every app, gadget, and wearable is competing for your attention with notifications, feeds, and endless features, TOBI offers exactly one thing: a single sentence, delivered when you choose. No algorithm deciding what you see. No pressure to keep scrolling. Just one line that you can carry with you, or choose to let go of.
It also lands right at the intersection of two things that are genuinely having a moment, tactile collectible objects and fortune-telling culture. Whether it’s tarot cards, birth chart apps, or manifestation journaling, people are leaning hard into mystical rituals right now. TOBI takes that same energy and wraps it in something you can hold in your hand and clip onto your keys. That’s a combination that feels both timely and timeless, the kind of thing you’d gift to a friend who already has everything.
For now, TOBI remains a concept, a beautifully realized one, but a concept all the same. There’s no release date, no crowdfunding page, and no price tag attached just yet. But honestly, the fact that it doesn’t exist yet somehow makes it more exciting to follow. Thoughtful, specific designs like this don’t always stay as renders forever. And if TOBI ever does make it to shelves, I have a feeling the waitlist would be very, very long, and I’d be somewhere near the front of it.
