I run GrapheneOS, a free and open source security-hardened mobile operating system based on Android, on my Google Pixel 6a phone. I install most of my apps from F-Droid, a repository for free and open source Android apps. I occasionally check F-Droid to see what is new, an endeavor which has led to New Leaf Journal articles. On May 19, 2025, I noticed an app called Aneko Reborn.
The app is developed by Nguyen Quang Minh and available on GitHub, F-Droid, and Google Play Store..
The F-Droid description reads as follows:
ANeko Reborn is an updated version of the classic ANeko app. This is an interactive cat animation that runs on your Android screen, inspired by nekoDA, xneko, oneko, and other similar programs. This version is based on the original ANeko project but has been updated to support modern Android versions with improved performance and compatibility.
F-Droid Descrition for ANeko Reborn
(Note: Neko means cat in Japanese. See e.g., my review of a visual novel called My Black Cat, which is the English language localization of a Japanese visual novel titled Watashi no Kuroneko.)
The name and app icon tipped me off that this app was similar to xneko and oneko, which stick a virtual cat that chases your cursor on X Window System desktops. I had not been aware of Aneko, an open source app which adds a cat to Android. ANeko Reborn is a fork of ANeko (which has not seen a new Android release since late 2022). We will be taking a look at ANeko Reborn in this article.
I installed ANeko Reborn and opened the app (ANeko Reborn requires Android 14 or higher). The GitHub repository distinguishes it from the original ANeko by noting that Reborn has an “[u]pdated user interface with Material You styling.” While I do not know what the original ANeko’s UI looked like, Reborn does indeed have a modern Material You UI.
The app’s homepage has a light mode/dark mode toggle, an on/off button, settings for configuring the transparency and size of the on-screen cat, and a skin selection.
By default, the only skin, or neko design, is a white and black cat. I was intrigued by a plus button which reads “Download more skins.” I was presented with an option to obtain skins from a “Download Collection” or “Search on Play Store,” with Play Store referring to Google Play Store. The app cautions that most of the skins have been removed from Google Play Store, but that is just as well since I do not use Google Play Store on my phone anyway. I followed the Download Collection link. This link took me to a GitHub repository for ANeko Reborn skins.
As of May 19, 2025, there are 17 ANeko Reborn skins available for download on GitHub. Only three of these skins were conventional cats. The last two skins on the list were the Pokémon Eevee (misspelled “Evee” in one instance) and Skitty.
![May 19, 2025 capture of the ANeko Reborn skins repository on GitHub. We see seven skins: Nanobot.r23, StarSyl Skin, Skin para Aneko Tato, ANeko skin Ufo A1, Chocola1, Evee [sic], and Skitty for ANeko. At the bottom we see directions explaining that each skin is an Android app.](https://thenewleafjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ANeko-Reborn-Skins-GitHub.jpg)
Since I have written often about Pokémon, I decided to try a Pokémon skin for ANeko. One might think I would go with Eevee being a veteran of the original Pokémon Red and Blue and all, but I have always been partial to Skitty, a pink cat-thing-Pokémon introduced in generation 3, so I went for that one. Each of the skins is an Android app apk file, so they have to be installed separately from ANeko Reborn (the skins are not available on F-Droid, so they have to be installed from the GitHub repository). While installing the skin, I received a prompt that it was designed for an earlier version of Android, which is not the case for the main ANeko Reborn app.
After installing the skin, I closed and opened ANeko Reborn and saw that Skitty was available. I selected Skitty and enabled ANeko Reborn. I was prompted to give ANeko Reborn overlay permissions, which I granted.
Sure enough, Skitty was now running around my screen. See Skitty run all over the Progressive Web App for my RSS/ATOM/JSON feed reader, Miniflux.
I decided it would be fun to see Skitty run on an article. I opened the Semafor Gulf newsletter in my feed reader, which I subscribe to via RSS using Kill the Newsletter. Below, you will see Skitty running in Egypt after leaving Saudi Arabia via the Gulf (perhaps due to Pokémon’s formerly uncertain status in the Kingdom).
I opened an external link from the newsletter in Wallabag via the Frigoligo app (because a read-it-later tool complements a feed reader beautifully). Now you can see Skitty running over an article about Emirates First Class.
ANeko Reborn appears to work as intended. I confirmed that the kitty runs even when the app is not open. It disappeared when I opened Settings, but appears to run over all other apps. I will note it is slightly less functional on Android than desktop for how I use my phone since I mostly interact with the screen by tapping, so Skitty was running around a bit more haphazardly than if I were performing long swipes, much less using a mouse.
I will note that I do not like having to install additional skins as separate apps. According to the GitHub repository, it is alternatively possible to install skins by adding them to a certain file directory and that “[m]ore detailed instructions will be provided soon.” I would prefer for it to be possible to upload new skins through the ANeko Reborn app UI.
I will conclude with one additional recommendation: It would be neat to make it possible to enable/disable ANeko for certain apps (i.e., disable it when a specific app is open) or events (i.e., disable it when a video is playing, or at least full screen).
All-in-all, ANeko is a fun little open source app for adding a kitty (or whatever you want if you design your own skins) to your Android or Android-based device.
