A new money app designed to teach young people financial literacy using AI-embedded personalisation and games is set to launch later this year.

Sunshine+Kittens will partner with Mastercard, embedded finance company PayFirm and cloud platform provider SaaScada to launch a full-service account for children between the ages of six and 18.

The app uses characters designed by Jake Lunt Davis, who created the BB8 Star Wars character and music from David Arnold, who has composed music for films including Casino Royal and Independence Day.

Sunshine+Kittens said the app provides gamified experiences through tasks and challenges. These aim to make learning fun and offer rewards and incentives which keep users engaged and encourage the retention of knowledge.

Charles O’Neil, co-founder of Sunshine+Kittens, said that the company aimed to be a “force for good” in the market and as a parent he wanted to ensure that the app is engaging and something that children want to interact with.

“Financial literacy, or lack thereof, is one of the greatest inhibitors to social mobility and economic wellbeing but the BNPL generation has amassed huge debts that they don’t really understand,” he added. “Levels of financial literacy amongst adults is almost non-existent – so if the parents haven’t been educated on this stuff, who is there to teach the kids?”

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