My Dog Twin Matches Humans with Shelter Dogs That Resemble Their Appearance and Personality

Cheil Worldwide and “King ddangkong,” a shelter dog character famous on YouTube in South Korea, launched My Dog Twin which uses AI to connect potential pet parents with shelter dogs who share similar physical characteristics and personalities.

80 thousand dogs are abandoned every year in South Korea. The numbers peak during the holiday season when people leave their homes for a long time. To raise awareness about abandoned dogs and encourage their adoption, My Dog Twin launched at the beginning of the Lunar New Year holidays which is one of the biggest holiday seasons in South Korea.

My Dog Twin was conceptualized based on findings that people are more likely to select companion dogs with physical features and personalities similar to their own.

When you upload your selfie on My Dog Twin website, the cross-species AI matching system looks at hundreds of shelter dog photos to find the one that has the most physical and personality similarities with the person by carefully studying facial features, expressions, and even pose angles of both. For example, round cheeks will be matched with fluffy jowls, a thoughtful expression with a calm senior dog, or an energetic smile with a playful pose. The character King ddangkong is also included as one of the shelter dogs to be matched for fun.

The match result shows detailed information about your furry match such as its name, age, and characteristics along with a similarity score and description of why the person and the chosen shelter dog are a perfect match to spark an instant emotional connection. With one click of a button, people can inquire about its adoption immediately. Moreover, every time participants share their matching results on social media, 100 won will be donated to KoreanDogsSanctuary Rescue to support shelter dogs.

"We have been carrying out campaigns aimed at solving societal issues through K-content such as launching a poster of drama that gives women drug-detecting strips to protect them from spiked drinks," said Hyekyung Jeong, creative director, Cheil Worldwide. "We are once again bridging the fictional world with the real world now with My Dog Twin, hoping to make a good opportunity for shelter dogs to meet new families."

Within two weeks, more than 20,000 people have visited My Dog Twin. The campaign will run until March 31st and be promoted through owned channels including YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.