Toymail Co., the creator of Mailmen toys and the Toymail app for iOS and Android, has received an investment by Amazon from the Alexa Fund and plans to integrate the Alexa Voice Service into its messaging platform for kids. Toymail will use the investment from the Alexa Fund for product research and to scale its SAS footprint.
Released during the 2013 holiday season, Toymail’s Mailmen toys play back messages that parents, friends, and families record from anywhere in the world using a mobile app, and let kids send back replies directly from the toys. The Alexa Voice Service allows cloud-connected objects to be controlled by the user’s voice for hands-free convenience, funneling information, music, and more into objects such as Toymail’s Mailmen.
Toymail’s mission is to keep kids connected to loved ones by building Internet connected and screen-free toys.
“Our goal is to give kids a reason to put down their devices and play with real toys so that they are connected, not isolated,” says Toymail CEO Gauri Nanda. “We hope to empower kids to engage in digital play and communication in a way that is self-directed.”
“We are thrilled to provide one of our early investments from the Alexa Fund to Toymail,” says Paul Bernard, director of Alexa Fund. “Toymail provides a fun way for families to connect and exchange messages—we can’t wait to continue our work with them.”
