AI Tamagotchi toy development record: Sean Hollister modifies Waveshare ESP32-S3 kit with Claude Code
Current overview (not historical)
Sean Hollister spent $50 on a Waveshare ESP32-S3 1.75C development kit and used Claude Code to reprogram it, enabling dialogue history reading, ElevenLabs voice output, remote photo preview, and a Tamagotchi-style minigame with hunger, boredom, and dirt levels. The original Muse hardware was slow and silent due to misinterpreting audio as transcription rather than commands, and its interface required phone reading. The homemade version surpasses Meta's official single static Jolly avatar.
Written with AI from the reporting · updated 10/31/2026
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- 1Unclassified fact stationNov 1, 00:16single sourcereport-time onlyrevised
AI Tamagotchi 玩具开发实录
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- Subject：
- Sean Hollister
- Action：
- 使用 Claude 重新编程 Waveshare ESP32-S3 1.75C 触控屏挂件以实现自定义功能
- Object：
- Muse AI 云服务与硬件外设
- Occurred (fact side)：
- not recorded
- Published (valid side)：
- Nov 1, 00:05
- First seen (known side)：
- Nov 1, 00:16
Fact stationSingle source · one-sided claimRevisedReport-time onlyCopy may have been revised later; time replay is bounded. Layer labels group reading only, not causation between layers.
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- The Verge · AIRelated fact: single sourceFact occurrence time unverifiedSource report revisedI built a $50 AI Tamagotchi using Meta's open-source code before Meta's official release
Report first recorded Nov 1, 00:16
The author spent $50 to purchase a Waveshare ESP32-S3 1.75C touchscreen pendant from China, then used Claude Code to reprogram the device. This transformed it into a functional AI gadget capable of displaying conversation history, using ElevenLabs AI voice output, remotely triggering phone camera shots, and adding Tamagotchi-style mini-games with hunger, boredom, and dirtiness levels. The device runs on Meta's open-source Muse AI code and tokens, allowing it to connect to the Muse AI cloud.
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Event activity trend
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- 3
- Comparable peak
- 10Nov 1, 01:00
- 24h change
- -50%
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