The marshmallow test, for money.
In 2021, cuttlefish passed it. Cuttle is a savings app that helps kids practice the same skill with real money.
The longest a cuttlefish waited for its favorite food in a 2021 study at the University of Cambridge.
Yes, a cuttlefish.
Researchers gave six common cuttlefish a choice. They could eat a piece of king prawn at once. Or they could wait for a live grass shrimp, the food they like best.
The cuttlefish waited. Each test made the wait 10 seconds longer. The most patient one held out for 130 seconds. Not bad for an animal that is not even a fish. A cuttlefish is a cousin of the octopus.
Kids face the same choice with money. Cuttle gives them a place to practice it.
Schnell and others, “Cuttlefish exert self-control in a delay of gratification task.” Proceedings of the Royal Society B, March 2021.
Now
King prawn
Later
Grass shrimp
The cuttlefish picked this plate.
Maya is saving for
A green bike
$140
9 of 14 stamps
5 to go
Dad approved $10 on Saturday.
What are you saving for?
Every goal in Cuttle starts with that question. A bike. A pair of cleats. A trip to see a cousin. Your kid names the goal and puts a price on it. In the app, every goal is drawn as a shrimp: the better thing at the end of the wait.
Then they save toward it, one stamp at a time. Each deposit puts a stamp in the book. A full page opens the pot.
Six pots. Six true stories.
Every pot in Cuttle is a sea creature. Each one does in the app what it does in the ocean.
WaitCuttle
The main goal
Waits for the better snack. The record in the Cambridge study is 130 seconds.
Trade upHermit
A bigger thing
Hermit crabs line up by size and swap into bigger shells, one after another.
PocketOtter
Money to spend
Sea otters keep a favorite rock in a pouch of loose skin under one arm.
Rainy dayPuff
For surprises
Pufferfish fill up with water when trouble comes, and go back to normal after.
Long swimTurtle
Far-off goals
Sea turtles cross whole oceans and come back to the beach where they hatched.
GiveWrasse
Money to give
Cleaner wrasse run small stations on the reef where other fish stop to get cleaned.
And a few helpers.
They do not hold money. They help with the jobs around it.
Seahorse
Grown-up match. Seahorse dads carry the eggs until they hatch.
Oyster
Interest. A pearl grows one thin layer at a time.
Barnacle
Allowance. A barnacle glues itself to one spot for life.
Octopus
Lessons. Octopuses can learn to open a jar.
Sea star
Fresh start. Many sea stars can grow back a lost arm.
Angler
Spending check. Anglerfish hang a glowing lure to pull prey in.
Stamp books are an old idea.
In the 1940s, American students bought savings stamps at school and pasted them into books. A full book held 75 stamps of 25 cents each. That was $18.75, and it bought a $25 savings bond.
Cuttle brings the book back. The stamps are digital. The patience is real.
For parents
You hold the money. Your kid holds the goal.
- 1You will approve every deposit and every withdrawal.
- 2You will set the interest you pay, and Cuttle will show your kid how it adds up.
- 3No ads. No in-app purchases. No streaks.
- 4This waitlist is for parents. This page collects nothing from kids.
Be first in line.
Cuttle is in early development. Join the waitlist and we will email you when it opens.