No, World Economic Forum does not plan to replace pets with cyber dogs

Context
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has been the target of various misleading and false narratives over the years. On May 30, 2023, a Facebook user named June Slater posted a video related to the WEF, claiming that the organization has proposed replacing pets with cyber dogs. The post read, "The WEF says we won't need pets, we can have cyber dogs, no need for animal charities, their future is devoid of animals. What a soulless world they have planned!" In the video, Slater claims that the WEF has said that humans won't need pets like dogs or cats and that there is no need to rescue animals because cyber dogs will be there in the future. “No need for Animal charities,” she says in the video. It also claims that the WEF has planned to control human life in all aspects.

In Fact
Logically Facts accessed the World Economic Forum's website and couldn't find any reports that talk about replacing pets with cyber dogs. We did find an article published by WEF on December 8, 2017, regarding robotic dogs. It was titled “Why the next breed of dog will be robotic.” The article explains the relationship between human interaction with robotic dogs, and the advantages and disadvantages of it. The WEF explains that robotic dogs, cats, and other animals have shown good therapeutic values and were used for dementia patients, who often experience anxiety and distress. However, the article states that robotic animals cannot provide social or emotional connections provided by living creatures. While the WEF mentions the uses and limitations of robotic dogs in this article, it has not recommended replacing living dogs/pets with anything else.

We came across another article published on the WEF website regarding how pet animals helped people during the pandemic. The article “This is how pets helped our mental health during lockdown” mentions that a study by the University of the West of Scotland showed that pet owners believed that having a companion animal improves their well-being, combats loneliness, and improves mental health.

 On January 15, 2019, WEF published an article on how to control the carbon footprint of pet animals. It has frequently spoken in favor of people consuming less meat, and it has written several articles endorsing meat substitutes and plant-based diets. However, we couldn't find any concrete evidence to show WEF endorsing the replacement of pet animals with robotic animals.

Some people believe that the WEF and other international organizations are behind significant social or political developments and are working to advance their own hidden agendas. Logically has previously debunked conspiracy theories around the WEF and the "Great Reset" agenda.

The Verdict
The WEF has not made any public announcements or expressed any intent to replace pets with artificial animals. This claim stems from a conspiracy theory. Therefore, we mark this claim false.