Ring opens Search Party feature to everyone, pledges $1 million to animal shelters nationwide

Ring brings its 'Search Party' feature for finding lost dogs to non-Ring camera owners | TechCrunch

Ring's AI-powered "Search Party" feature, which leverages the company's network of cameras to find lost dogs, is now available to all Ring customers in the U.S. For the first time, the feature will be made available to those who don't own a Ring camera, too. Launched last fall, Search Party uses AI to find possible matches for lost dogs across neighbors' camera footage. When a neighbor reports a lost dog in the Ring app, nearby outdoor cameras use AI to scan for possible matches. If a match is found, that camera owner receives an alert and can optionally choose to share any related video clips with their neighbor who reported the pet missing. They'll also have an option to call the owner or send them a message, without sharing their own phone number. Ring says the feature has been reuniting more than a dog per day since its launch. Previously, Search Party was only available to customers with a Ring camera installed. The company is now making Search Party accessible to anyone through the Ring app. "Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before," noted Ring founder Jamie Siminoff, in an announcement. "That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors," he added, referring to the company's Neighbors app for Ring customers. Alongside the launch and expansion, Amazon-owned Ring said it's committing $1 million to equip animal shelters with Ring camera systems, and aims to aid 4,000 U.S. shelters. By adding the shelters to Ring's network, the company hopes more lost dogs will be reunited with their owners. The company already works with other non-profits, including Petco Love and Best Friends Animal Society, and is open to other partnerships.

Move Over, Puppy Bowl: Ring's Dog-Rescuing Super Bowl Ad Brings Tears and Tech

Expertise Smart home | Smart security | Home tech | Energy savings | A/V It's only been a couple of months since security brand Ring rolled out its Search Party function to locate lost dogs, but the company says its already helped pet owners find more than one lost dog per day. Now Ring is going much bigger with the project, including a cute Super Bowl spot and the ability for anyone to use Search Party, even if they don't own a Ring security cam. Search Party is a particularly innovative use of advanced home AI, which Ring adopted last year to help identify objects, summarize caught video and save time. However, the Amazon-owned Ring thought it could do more with its AI, so it developed a pet-friendly use unlike anything I've seen before. Search Party allowed Ring users to post pictures of lost four-legged friends on the Ring Neighbors platform. Users who opted in had their captured outdoor video sent to Ring for analysis. If the cameras detected a pet and the AI thought it resembled the lost dog, the user got a notification with the ability to share the info and location with the worried pet owner. Apparently, the AI gambit proved successful -- so successful that Ring is ramping up Search Party in a major way, just in time for the Super Bowl. Now Search Party is available for anyone who wants to sign up for the Ring Neighborhood app. You don't need a Ring cam or video doorbell to use the feature now. The only limitation is that the detection service is only available for US users at this time. Ring also announced a $1 million project to provide animal shelters across the country with Ring cameras, which would presumably make Search Party even more effective if a four-legged friend was already brought into a shelter. If the Super Bowl ad wasn't enough to tug your heartstrings, Ring's announcement also includes several stories from pet owners who have used Search Party to locate their furry family, including a very cute doggo who was found in just 15 minutes. On a final note, I know there's been a lot of talk and conflicting information around Ring cameras and Flock surveillance. Flock has been known to share license plate and drone footage with local police departments and other law enforcement, which has made people cautious about letting the company near their home security cameras. However, while Ring does have an upcoming partnership with Flock, Ring has stated the collaboration hasn't started yet, and when it does, users will have to manually give consent to share videos for every new event.

Have You Seen This Dog? Anyone Can Now Use Ring Cameras to Track Lost Pets

Ring added lost dog tracking features to its cameras and doorbells in September, and now it's expanding the feature to those who don't own one of its smart home products. Search Party allows users to submit a lost dog to its system. Your neighbor's Ring doorbells can then use AI to monitor whether the animal walks into view. If a dog is seen, the camera's owner would be notified and could share the video with the dog's owner to help them track it down. The latest update now allows those without a Ring camera to set up their own lost pet listing in the Neighbors by Ring app and ask that Ring owners nearby keep an eye out. "Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before," says Ring Founder Jamie Siminoff. "That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors." Amazon says the feature has helped find over a dog a day in the US since it first launched. The feature is on by default, meaning all Ring devices automatically monitor for lost dogs unless the user turns it off, prompting some security concerns. Ring previously said it plans to add additional pet-tracking features to its cameras, but it hasn't specified which animals it will track.

Amazon opens Ring's missing dog-finding network to all in the US

Karandeep Singh Oberoi is a Durham College Journalism and Mass Media graduate who joined the Android Police team in April 2024, after serving as a full-time News Writer at Canadian publication MobileSyrup. Prior to joining Android Police, Oberoi worked on feature stories, reviews, evergreen articles, and focused on 'how-to' resources. Additionally, he informed readers about the latest deals and discounts with quick hit pieces and buyer's guides for all occasions. Oberoi lives in Toronto, Canada. When not working on a new story, he likes to hit the gym, play soccer (although he keeps calling it football for some reason🤔) and try out new restaurants in the Greater Toronto Area. Did that squirrel in the middle of the street finally convince your dog to escape through the ajar main gate? The dread that follows is a universal experience. For pet owners (dog parents, specifically), the immediate instinct is to step out and call your pet's name around the neighborhood. If that doesn't work, the next best step is to start posting about your missing dog in groups online, complete with physical posters around your neighborhood. Amazon's Ring network has been able to aid users in the process of finding their lost dog with 'Search Party for Dogs,' a feature that is now expanding to users that don't own Ring hardware. Related How to set up a Ring camera You only need a few minutes to get started Posts By Hagop Kavafian For reference, the massive mesh network of outdoor Ring hardware, including Ring cameras and doorbells, has been leveraged to help reunite lost dogs with their families. Search Party for Dogs essentially uses AI to scrub home security footage to see if it could find a match for missing dogs. If and when the camera does find a dog that resembles one reported as missing, it alerts the camera's owner. The owner then has the option to manually review the footage and compare it to an image of the missing dog. If they match, the owner can then choose to share the information with the neighbor searching for their pet. The paywall is gone Up until now, adding a missing dog alert on the system was reserved for those that had bought into the Ring ecosystem. Starting now, that's no longer the case. Subscribe to our newsletter for pet-search tech coverage Subscribing to our newsletter gives hands-on guides, community tactics, and clear explainers about pet-search technology and neighborhood tools to help reunite lost dogs - practical steps and deeper coverage to put this tech to work. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime. The e-commerce giant announced the feature's expansion in a new blog post, indicating that anyone in the US can now start a Search Party in the Ring app to help find their missing dog, "whether they own Ring cameras or not." If and when you do start a Search Party via the Ring app, ensure that you edit it if your dog has been found, or renew it if your dog hasn't been found after a few hours, or start a new one if it expires. Before Search Party, the best you could do was drive up and down the neighborhood, shouting your dog's name in hopes of finding them. Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before. That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors.

Ring will help you find a lost dog even if you don't own a Ring camera with the expanded "Search Party" feature

Last Fall Ring introduced a new AI-powered feature dubbed "Search Party" that uses the company's network of doorbell and security cameras to help worried pet owners find their lost dogs. However, you needed to have a Ring camera to access the feature. Ring just announced that the feature will be made available to all Ring customers, even those who don't own a Ring camera. According to Ring, the company has helped "bring home more than a dog a day" since it launched. Search Party uses AI to find potential matches for lost dogs using footage from your neighbors' cameras. You can report a lost dog in the Ring app, and nearby outdoor cameras will use AI to scan for dogs. If a match is found, the camera owner receives an alert and can choose to share related clips with the missing pet owner. There's also an option to call the neighbor or send a message without sharing their phone number. Now you just have to have the Ring Neighbors app to use the feature. "Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before," Ring founder Jamie Siminoff said in the announcement. "That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors." The Amazon-owned Ring also announced that it will be committing more than $1 million to equip animal shelters across the U.S. with Ring camera systems and to aid shelters in reuniting lost dogs with owners. Adding shelters to the network is one way the company hopes to help dogs find their people. When Search Party was first announced, it was promised that other animals, including cats, would be added at a later date, though that wasn't updated with today's announcement.

People Are Freaked Out by the Ring Doorbell Camera Super Bowl Ad

Ring's Super Bowl LX ad was supposed to introduce a new feature that could potentially revolutionize how missing dogs are looked for: via AI-powered doorbell cameras. However the new feature, titled 'Search Party', has instead been greeted with alarm, as some internet users label it "dystopian". President and CEO of Amazon Andy Jassy calls it a "compelling" use of AI. "Millions of dogs go missing in the U.S. every year -- and options for finding them are often painfully limited. Our Ring team saw an opportunity to use our community and technology to help, so they built Search Party," Jassy writes on X. "When a pet owner posts about a lost dog in the Ring app, nearby participating outdoor Ring cameras in the neighborhood begin looking for potential matches. If yours spots what might be the missing dog, it lets you know. You see the photo alongside footage from your camera, then can choose to share the video with the pet's owner." Jassy says that Search Party has found 99 dogs in just 90 days. While it is ostensibly a noble feature, commenters quickly soured on it. "Nice way to start a mass surveillance product and label it as dog rescue," writes one person beneath Jassy's post. "Ring offering to turn your neighborhood into an AI-fueled surveillance state under the guise of 'helping you find your lost dog' is CRAZY," writes another. "Before Search Party, the best you could do was drive up and down the neighborhood, shouting your dog's name in hopes of finding them," says Ring's founder Jamie Siminoff. "Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before. That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors." Neighbors is a hyperlocal social networking app on Ring. Back in October, Siminoff says he thinks AI will make Ring cameras even more effective at securing people's homes, preventing crime, and generally making neighborhoods safer, better places to live. Also among the Super Bowl LX ads: Oscar-nominated filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone for a memorable Squarespace commercial.

Ring now lets anyone use the Neighbors app to report and find lost pets

Millions of dogs go missing in the US every year, turning a routine walk or an open gate into a stressful search for owners. Ring wants to make those searches faster and more community-driven. The company is now opening up its Search Party for Dogs feature so that anyone with a lost pet can ask for help through the Neighbors app, even if they do not own a Ring camera themselves. For the uninitiated, Search Party for Dogs is an AI-powered feature that was launched a few months ago. It allowed Ring camera owners to work together in report and spot missing dogs in their neighborhoods. Recommended Videos Now, Ring is expanding that reach, letting all pet owners tap into the same network of neighbors and outdoor cameras when a dog goes missing. How Search Party for Dogs works in the Neighbors app Pet owners can report a lost dog in the Neighbors app by adding photos and details about their dog. That information is then shared with nearby Ring users, whose outdoor cameras can help look for potential matches. The system relies on AI to compare a reported missing dog with animals spotted on Ring's outdoor cameras. Indoor Ring cameras are not used for this feature. If a Ring camera detects a dog that could be a match, the camera owner receives an alert showing an image of the dog along with relevant video clips. From there, the camera owner can decide what to do next. They can choose to share the footage with the pet's owner, reach out directly, or even ignore Search Party and Community Requests alerts entirely. Ring says the idea is to make finding a lost dog a shared effort, rather than something owners have to handle alone. By opening Search Party for Dogs to everyone through the Neighbors app, Ring is betting that community eyes, AI, and a little goodwill can help reunite more dogs with their families faster. In other Ring-related news, the company has also added a security seal that helps prevent camera footage from being tampered with, reinforcing its focus on trust and transparency.

Ring expands AI "Search Party" to find lost dogs nationwide

Ring expanded its AI-powered Search Party feature on February 2, 2026, making it available to all U.S. Ring customers, including those without Ring cameras. The tool scans neighbors' outdoor camera footage to locate lost dogs reported via the Ring app. The feature launched last fall exclusively for customers owning Ring cameras. It leverages Ring's network of cameras to identify possible matches for lost dogs. A neighbor initiates the process by reporting a lost dog directly in the Ring app. Nearby outdoor cameras then employ artificial intelligence to scan their footage for dogs matching the description provided in the report. Once a potential match appears, the owner of the detecting camera receives an immediate alert through the app. This owner holds the option to share relevant video clips with the neighbor who filed the lost dog report. Additional communication options include calling the reporting neighbor or sending a message, all executed without disclosing the camera owner's personal phone number. These privacy protections ensure secure interactions within the community network. Ring states that Search Party has reunited more than one dog per day with their owners since its initial rollout last fall. The expansion now extends access to the feature through the Ring app for any user, regardless of camera ownership. Previously restricted participants can now fully engage in the search process. Ring founder Jamie Siminoff commented on the development in the announcement: "Now, pet owners can mobilize the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before." He continued, "That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbors." The Neighbors app serves Ring customers for community-based sharing and alerts. In parallel with this rollout, Amazon-owned Ring pledged $1 million to install Ring camera systems in animal shelters. The initiative targets support for 4,000 U.S. shelters. Integrating these shelters into Ring's camera network positions them to contribute footage scans, thereby facilitating additional reunions of lost dogs with owners. Ring maintains partnerships with nonprofits such as Petco Love and Best Friends Animal Society. The company expresses openness to forming further collaborations to enhance lost pet recovery efforts.

Ring's Search Party feature can now reunite more lost dogs with their owners

Ring is making its Search Party feature available to non-camera owners in the US. It's already reuniting dogs with humans at a rate of more than one a day Amazon owned smart home company Ring has announced its Search Party feature, designed to reunite lost dogs with their humans, is now available to everyone in the US. The AI-powered feature taps into a neighbourhood network of Ring Video Doorbell and security cameras for potential sightings of our four legged friends and, even since its limited launch, has been responsible for bringing home more than one dog per day, on average. Until today, it's only been available to Ring camera owners in the US but now it's live for non-hardware owners too, via the Ring app. That opens the door to everyone to enlist help with finding their errand best bud via other folks' cameras. The feature is quite clever. The dog owner uploads a photo of the missing dog and then AI computer vision is deployed to consult the footage from the cameras of neighbours who've opted in. If there's a potential match, the camera owner will be pinged. They can see the missing dog and then choose to share that information looking for their pupper. This can help narrow down the search and it also might enlist a few new helpers in looking for the dog. "Before Search Party, the best you could do was drive up and down the neighbourhood, shouting your dog's name in hopes of finding them," said Jamie Siminoff, Ring's chief inventor. "Now, pet owners can mobilise the whole community -- and communities are empowered to help -- to find lost pets more effectively than ever before. That's why we believe it's so important to make this feature available to anyone who shares a lost dog post in Neighbours." Ring says lost pets are among the most common posts in the Ring Neighbours app with more than one million reports of lost or found pets in the last year. "Millions of dogs go missing in the U.S. every year, and it's a terrible ordeal for them and their families," Siminoff said. "We knew Search Party could help, but the speed and impact of these early reunions have blown us away."

Amazon is using AI to help people find their missing dogs: Here's how

Amazon Ring's new AI feature, Search Party for Dogs, is helping reunite lost pets with owners. Neighborhood Ring cameras scan for missing dogs, alerting owners if a match is found. This technology has already helped bring home 99 dogs. The system uses computer vision to identify breeds and sizes. We've spent years hearing about how artificial intelligence is going to take our jobs, reshape industries, and generally make life more uncertain. Now Amazon wants to tell a different kind of AI story. One where the same technology could help you find your dog if it ever goes missing. That idea sits at the heart of Amazon Ring's AI-powered Search Party for Dogs, a feature that turns neighborhood security cameras into a quiet, opt-in search network for lost pets. Instead of posters, frantic social media posts, or driving around calling a dog's name, pet owners can now ask nearby Ring cameras to keep an eye out. Also Read: Why Amazon stock (AMZN) is falling again today -- key factors driving the decline Amazon CEO Andy Jassy spoke about Search Party in a post on X on Sunday as a real-world example of how AI can quietly make a difference. Built by the Ring team, Search Party kicks in when a pet owner reports a missing dog in the Ring app. Participating outdoor Ring cameras in the area begin scanning for potential matches, using computer vision trained on tens of thousands of dog videos to recognise breeds, sizes, fur patterns, and other visual cues. Unlike traditional lost-pet searches that rely on posters or social media posts, the system works quietly in the background. If a camera spots a dog that looks like the missing pet, the camera owner gets an alert: Your camera may have spotted a missing dog. From there, they can choose whether to review the footage and share it -- keeping privacy firmly in their control. How Amazon Ring's AI finds missing dogs At the core of Amazon Ring AI Search Party for Dogs is computer vision technology designed specifically for pets. When a Search Party is active, participating cameras automatically analyse footage for dogs that resemble the reported animal. The AI compares visual features rather than relying on collars or microchips, tools that are often missing or overlooked when pets run away. Ring chief inventor Jamie Siminoff, in a blog post, said the goal was to replace the helplessness many owners feel when a dog goes missing. Before Search Party, he noted, pet owners often drove around their neighbourhoods calling their dog's name, hoping for luck. Now, entire communities can be mobilised in minutes through technology many already have installed. Also Read: Economic Survey 2026: India wants to use AI to solve real-world problems, not for hype Real stories behind Ring's Search Party feature The impact is already tangible. According to Jassy, Search Party has helped reunite 99 dogs since launching roughly three months ago, which is more than one dog per day. For Kylee, a Ring customer in Kansas, the technology proved its value almost instantly. Her mixed-breed dog Nyx slipped through a small hole he'd dug under the backyard fence. Within 15 minutes of starting a Search Party, a neighbor's Ring camera flagged footage of Nyx, giving her the only lead she had. Similar stories are stacking up across the US. A Ring customer and military veteran named Kurt feared the worst when his service dog Lainey went missing after jumping a fence. He launched a Search Party, and later that same day, the notification he had been waiting for arrived: Lainey had been spotted. Search Party expands beyond Ring camera owners Earlier this month, Ring expanded Amazon Ring AI Search Party for Dogs so that anyone in the US can start a Search Party, even if they don't own a Ring camera. The move reflects usage patterns within the Ring Neighbors app, where lost pets are among the most common posts. Over 1 million reports were shared last year alone, Amazon said in its post. Alongside the feature rollout, Ring announced a $1 million commitment to help equip animal shelters across the country with Ring camera systems. Also Read: Indians show no urge to press buy button for AI PCs A quieter kind of AI success story What sets Amazon Ring AI Search Party for Dogs apart is its restraint. The technology doesn't automatically share footage, doesn't broadcast data publicly, and doesn't force participation. As Andy Jassy put it, the feature shows what happens when AI is designed around everyday problems rather than abstract promises. In this case, it's not about automation or efficiency metrics, it's about getting dogs home. And judging by the growing list of reunions, it's working.

Amazon CEO says Ring cameras are helping find missing dogs with AI

Amazon CEO praises real-world impact of community-based tech When Amazon CEO Andy Jassy tweeted about "a good use case for AI," he wasn't trying to hype the latest and greatest AI breakthroughs on the cutting-edge of tech. He was simply talking about dogs, especially lost dogs. Specifically, a Labrador named Lainey. One fateful day, Lainey just jumped over her home's fence and disappeared, Jassy wrote. But before long a nearby Ring camera pinged an alert that helped reunite her with her owner the same day. Sounds like some surveillance-based magic? It's AI, wrote Jassy. Welcome to Search Party, Ring's AI-powered lost dog detection system, and one of the most quietly humane applications of AI in the wild (until Jassy's tweet, that is). Launched in November 2025, Search Party is a feature inside the Ring Neighbors app, which turns it into a digital bulletin board for missing pets. Through the app, all pet owners need to do is upload a photo and activate the feature. Behind the scenes, Ring's computer vision model - trained on tens of thousands of dog videos - begins scanning compatible outdoor cameras in the area for possible matches. If a neighbour's camera spots a visual match, the app nudges them with a clip and lets them decide whether to share it with the pet's owner or not. This altruistic feature, Search Party, needs no subscription to work. Just neighbourhood goodwill and next-gen object recognition. Also read: Amazon MGM's AI Studio explained: Generative video as a tool for film and TV productions Of course, it raises eyebrows - as it rightly should. The system is opt-out, not opt-in, meaning it's active by default on compatible devices - reviving old debates about Ring's data-sharing practices and user consent. But the rollout included clear app controls to disable the feature entirely or filter notifications. More importantly, the algorithm doesn't flood owners with footage of multiple false positives, according to Andy Jassy. It's tuned to look for specific, unique dog traits, and only flags video if there's high visual confidence. How effective is Search Party, I hear you wonder? According to Andy Jassy, CEO, Amazon, within the first three months alone, Search Party helped reunite 99 lost dogs with their humans - more than one a day. The emotional return loop is instant and tangible. Yes, all the trepidation around camera-based surveillance is well-founded. But at its core, this Search Party feature feels like it's about something deeper. It uses AI not to predict our shopping habits or throw contextual ads on our screens, but to facilitate small acts of kindness and goodwill - every time someone checks their Ring camera for a stranger's missing dog. It's AI not trying to sound like a human, but helping us act like better ones.