Trying to gain attention in the tech industry can be daunting. If you don't make a booming first impression or raise millions in your first VC round, you could be destined for obscurity.
In order to stand out from the crowd, some startups adopt mascots for their products. However, a mascot's success all depends on the public's reaction. (See Microsoft Word's Clippy or the Pets.com hand puppet for examples of what not to do.)
The trick is to make your product lovable enough that the public embraces whichever mascot you've chosen. URL shortener Bit.ly's pufferfish is a great example. The company introduced a clever mascot to make the brand more three-dimensional.