The Friend AI pendant’s creator promoted a ‘Friend protest’ in NYC

If you live in NYC, there’s almost no way you’ve missed the Friend AI pendant subway ad fallout — whether you’ve taken pictures of the most inspired graffiti on the ads in the tunnels, tried to avert your eyes from the near-constant presence of the device pictured on all the ads inside subway cars, or had a friend text you, “What is that thing?” Although Friend was founded in 2023, the $129 chatbot-enabling necklaces only began shipping this summer, and the accompanying subway ad campaign — which set the company back more than $1 million, almost as much as its domain name — debuted last month. Reviews have painted a picture of a device that can make people uncomfortable and doesn’t often work well at what it’s supposed to do (i.e., listen to your conversations and the happenings of your day and offer quips and feedback). On the same weekend as the worldwide No Kings protests, there was also a Friend protest. It was organized by a coalition of people who say they’re interested in bringing attention to the harms of overdependence on digital technology, from social media and smartphones to emerging tech like AI — and the choice to opt out and choose in-person connection instead. “We want not just to hold companies and founders accountable, but we want to move together to answer the question of what’s next,” one of the organizers, Nick Plante, who also organized a recent “Delete Day” action, told The Verge. He said it was “part of a growing network of public events around the city that are bringing people together.” Friend founder Avi Schiffmann posted an image of a taped-up flyer that pictured the device, which read, “I heard you new yorkers got beef with me. Let’s hash this out once and for-all, before we go bankrupt.” The flyer also gave a time and place to meet up, along with a handwritten missive to “bring your markers.” Schiffmann’s post shows people using Sharpies to deface a Friend banner, including one person writing “Fuck AI,” a chalk drawing of a sad-faced Friend device, and people seeming to play basketball while holding a homemade cutout of the Friend device. Schiffmann told The Verge that he had no part in planning the event, adding that he took a red-eye flight to New York to be there because people sent him photos of the ads. Organizers told The Verge that they had sent him an invite, though they didn’t know if he had received it, and that he brought some of his contacts with him, as well as a film crew. ”During the event I was up on the soapbox speaking to the crowd and later that night found them at the park and we all sat in a big circle and talked. They were all very serious,” he wrote. “I found it to be a productive conversation and we all shook hands at the end.” Schiffmann also posted a photo in which he seemed to have signed a handwritten document stating that he “will not sell friend.com” to Big Tech CEOs for “surveillance purposes.” [Media: https://twitter.com/AviSchiffmann/status/1980046529135312940] Another video in the thread depicted people holding the paper cutout of the device and tearing it apart as the crowd chanted, “Get real friends.” After the free-for-all of tearing it up was over, people yelled, “Get that shit out of here,” and “Fuck AI.” [Media: https://twitter.com/AviSchiffmann/status/1980047174328062215] In short: New Yorkers don’t take kindly to overzealous subway ads — especially if they’re about AI being a passable replacement for a “friend.” And for Friend’s CEO, that’s still better than them not paying attention at all. Update: This article was updated after organizers of the protest reached out to offer additional details on the event.