The ghost in the machine: Are Hatch alarm clocks the highway to hell?
Bronwyn Rideout - 24th November 2025
While society was healing from RaptureTok, a new Christian TikTok trend was stewing around the corner - and it was all around a (admittedly expensive) combination alarm clock with light and sound machine. Specifically, the controversy involved multiple devices sold by Hatch in the United States.
Bronwyn, you certainly aren’t asking yourself, aren’t all alarm clocks essentially light and sound machines? Sure, but there is a difference between this, which costs $34 NZD (which I think is the most shocking thing I discovered):
And a fancy device like this, which costs about $170 USD:
I won’t quibble about this cost just yet. I will freely admit that, like many, I use my phone as an alarm clock far more frequently than I actually use it as a phone. And that is part of the Hatch pitch, to provide phone-free sleep with products for adults and children. Hatch devices use a combination of sounds and light to help you fall asleep, stay asleep, and wake gently. Additional content, such as podcasts, meditations, and bedtime stories, is available with the $49.99/year subscription for Hatch+. Ironically, while Hatch is promoting phone-free sleep, you do need to download the Hatch app to your phone/tablet to set up the clock.
Hatch taps into the concept of sleep hygiene - a set of behavioural habits and environmental adaptations that help individuals get 7-9 hours of uninterrupted and restorative sleep. The principles of safe sleep have been around since the 1800s, but the apparent changes in society mean that any guidance must necessarily evolve with the times. Findings from research into formal sleep hygiene programs have been inconsistent, and chronic poor sleep may be pathological and require clinical intervention. While fancy, light-changing alarm clocks can be a helpful tool, following the principles of sleep hygiene is technically free and accessible to all, albeit with multiple caveats.
Now there’s a meme that some people go to sleep while listening to true crime podcasts or crime shows:
Hatch isn’t oblivious to this fact, as they do include a true crime podcast in their Hatch+ offerings. But they make it clear that this is true crime “…without the scary”. So no serial killing cannibals.
While Hatch doesn’t quite go all in on the horror/serial killer genre for its product offerings, it did play it up in its Hallowe’en advertising, which got it in hot water with some Christian content creators. I’ve written about the lengths some Christian denominations go to to protect or distract children from Hallowe’en with their alternative celebrations, so we shouldn’t be too surprised that some took offence at Hatch’s video. However, the recent failure of RaptureTok (or success if you think at all attention is good attention) was still fresh. Whether this controversy would have ever escaped the confines of ChristianTok if everyone’s algorithms weren’t entirely out of whack from the previous month is a question I think is worth asking, but it is anyone’s guess.
“It’s here. The season where we dabble in the dark arts, set the right light vibes, dress like a small Victorian child for bed, and regulate our circadian rhythm with restorative phone-free sleep”
If you are a fan of film adaptations of campy, 2000s vampire novels written by a Mormon, then your sharp ears might have picked up the Blue Foundation’s “Eyes on Fire”, aka the hoa hoa hoa song, used in this commercial. It is one of the best-known songs from the Twilight movie Soundtrack.
There were two videos that gained the most traction. TikTokker Charityisme comments on both videos, calling Fallelujah a mockery of God. She also shared that she was no longer able to control the device from her phone, and found that the device was turning itself on and off as well as changing the sound. She learnt that others shared this experience, and while others have attempted to explain the phenomenon as an auditory hallucination or radio interference, the company’s use of the word ritual and their offering of Zodiac sounds was apparently evidence of divination being used.
It’s exhausting to watch an okay-ish skeptical argument go to waste, as Hatch does include this in their blog:
“For people who struggle with racing thoughts at bedtime, extra-layered sounds can be a bedtime-saver. Comforting for some, staticky color noise can feel like an empty void for anxious thoughts. Incorporating other sounds, Snider says, can give your brain something to latch onto — creating a more comforting experience. Zodiac sounds, for example, mix noise (think color noises) with actual music played on a chord pad to create a full-on experience that matches the energy of each Sun sign, from earthy and cozy Taurus to airy and watery Aquarius.”
The second-most-frequently-shared TikTokker, simply.jaelolivares, claims to have heard murmurs from her son’s Hatch device. Jael’s fire-and-brimstone response to rebuking the spirits in the clock is likely what pushed her video into the consciousness of commentators.
Charity, Jael, and others have claimed to have thrown out their devices and, social media being what it is, commenters are engaging, but the feedback has been interesting. While some are supportive, accusations of religious psychosis are being tossed out there, which is unsurprising given the false rapture. Others noted that having the clock in the first place was a privilege, and to throw out something that was working is incredibly wasteful, especially in this economy.
In response to this controversy, Hatch launched a pitch-perfect response - a repossession program. According to Wired, as of October 31st, there have been 10,000 inquiries from people wanting to purchase a returned demonic clock, but only 10 actual returns from unhappy customers concerned about demon possession.
If you wish to buy your own portal to Hades, you will need to do a lot of legwork. Hatch does not ship directly to New Zealand, although their products can be purchased from online retailers like Kogan and Dick Smith. Similar clocks, sometimes called a sunrise clock, can be purchased from Kmart, Briscoes, and MightyApe, but reports of demonic activity are unavailable at present.
An important thing to note is that both Charity and Jael have Hatch devices for their children. It appears that Charity disposed of her model made for babies and children, on which the adult content cannot be accessed; it is unclear which model Jael and others used. Nevertheless, under the FCC regulatory guidelines, unlicensed products like these clocks must do at least two things - they must not cause harmful interference, and must handle any received interference, including interference that may cause undesired operation; Canada has similar rules. This can be a matter of public safety, as your Sagittarius sound bath playlist should not interfere with the functioning of radio communications for fire, ambulance, aeronautical services, etc.; conversely, if your enjoyment of said sound bath is interrupted by that type of interference, it is likely for a reason more important than your end-of-work chill session. While I would like to imagine that a disgruntled neighbour is playing a prank on the homeowners, children being the unwitting victims of such shenanigans is decidedly uncool.
I disagree that religious psychosis was at play here, but I’m cautious of what this type of belief and behaviour is indicating. While Hayley Caruthers’ comment above about the 80s satanic panic feels more on the nose than anyone should be comfortable with, organised book and record burnings happened through the 60s and 80s. Tossing out expensive clocks seems to be very bougie and self-limiting, but the motivations and justifications are unchanged from what they were 40-60 years ago. This sort of thing never really goes away, but our skeptical skills in combating it can get rusty from lack of practice.
