myFirst raises over US$8 million to expand kid-safe technology ecosystem
Singapore-based KidsTech company myFirst has secured over US$8 million in Series A funding, in a round led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India. The investment is intended to accelerate the...
Singapore-based KidsTech company myFirst has secured over US$8 million in Series A funding, in a round led by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India. The investment is intended to accelerate the company’s push to build a dedicated digital infrastructure for children, spanning hardware, connected services and a secure social platform.
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Founded with a focus on age-appropriate consumer technology, myFirst is known for products such as the myFirst Fone watchphone and the myFirst Circle family application. The company states that it serves more than one million families across 60 countries. The new capital will support international expansion and further development of its integrated ecosystem, which aims to offer children a controlled introduction to digital communication and creativity.
Funding to scale a global KidsTech platform
The Series A round positions myFirst to deepen its KidsTech ecosystem by integrating devices, software and services into a single environment tailored for children. According to the company, the funding will be directed towards enhancing product capabilities and strengthening its secure, family-oriented social network, myFirst Circle.
The company plans to expand its footprint across North Asia, the Middle East, the United States and Europe. Growth will be supported through retail and telecommunications partnerships, including collaborations with major retailers such as Walmart and Best Buy. These channels are expected to extend the reach of myFirst’s hardware products and subscription-based services into new markets.
G-Jay Yong, Founder and CEO of myFirst, said the company was established in response to a gap in the market for child-specific technology. “We started myFirst because our own kids wanted to use technology, but everything out there was built for adults. Every child deserves their first digital device to be built just for them, at a price point that makes it accessible. This new funding will help us bring safer, kid-ready tech to even more families around the world, and help parents feel confident about their child’s first step into the digital world.”
Investor sees structural shift in children’s technology adoption
The investment reflects a broader thesis around changing parental attitudes towards children’s technology use. As families seek alternatives to mainstream platforms designed for adults, demand is emerging for purpose-built devices and applications that embed parental controls and content safeguards from the outset.
Jessica Koh, Senior Executive Director at Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India, said the firm sees a long-term opportunity in the segment. “We see a structural shift in how families introduce children to technology, driving demand for purpose-built products rather than adaptations of adult platforms. The global KidsTech opportunity remains underpenetrated, and with its integrated ecosystem and global reach, myFirst is well positioned to define the category at scale.”
The KidsTech category remains relatively fragmented, with many products either repurposed from adult devices or limited to standalone hardware. By contrast, myFirst is positioning itself as an ecosystem provider, combining hardware, applications and cloud services within a unified framework. The approach aligns with broader venture capital interest in category-defining consumer platforms that can achieve scale through network effects and recurring services.
Building a child-first digital identity framework
Central to myFirst’s proposition is the myFirst Fone watchphone, a wearable device that enables children to make calls, send messages and share updates. The product incorporates built-in GPS tracking, safety zones and an SOS function, allowing parents to monitor activity without providing a full-featured smartphone.
Complementing the hardware is myFirst Circle, described as a closed, advertisement-free social platform designed specifically for children. The application allows young users to share content exclusively with approved family members and friends within an encrypted, parent-controlled environment. The company positions this as an alternative to open social networks that may expose children to strangers or unsuitable material.
Beyond watchphones and applications, myFirst’s broader portfolio includes cameras, headphones, drawing tablets and other creative tools. These products are integrated through connected services intended to support communication, creativity and self-expression in a supervised setting. The ecosystem strategy aims to create a foundational layer for what the company describes as children’s first digital identities, combining access with safety controls.
As regulators and educators worldwide debate children’s screen time and digital exposure, companies operating in the KidsTech segment face both opportunity and scrutiny. myFirst’s expansion plans suggest confidence that demand for structured, child-first digital environments will continue to grow across developed and emerging markets.
