The latest AI hardware gimmick is a $99 wearable pendant that’s “always listening” and “talking” to you about what you’re doing. Called Friend, the pendant is the product of Avi Schiffmann, a tech genius who’s launched some great (but sometimes controversial) projects in the past. Schiiffmann announced the launch of Friend on Tuesday, and shared a video showing off the X’s virtual companion’s obvious features: Friend doesn’t actually talk to you; instead, it texts your phone with little jokes in response to what you say and do.
A friend’s recommendation. Not fictitious.
Order now at https://t.co/7kGiH5pQVK pic.twitter.com/qU58xNvX5v
— Avi (@AviSchiffmann) July 30, 2024
The Friend is currently available for pre-order only, and The Verge reports that the first batch of pendants may not ship until January of next year. Interestingly, Schiffmann previously envisioned the device as the “Wearable Mama,” which doesn’t sound all that user-friendly; perhaps “Friend” would have been a better brand name. The device was also previously known as the “Tab.”
Despite the well-crafted advertising that went out on Tuesday, the product’s website, Friend.com, offers little useful information for users. The site’s only “blog” is a single posting published today that outlines Shiffman’s vision for the automated pendant.
In a blog post, Shiffman wrote:
Friends is the word that describes how alone I felt.
Thank you to the incredible artists and engineers who helped bring this work to life over the past year – you’ve expanded our appreciation for art in everyday objects.
I’d love to hear how this friend fits into your life. Thanks for reading!
The FAQ page provides limited details about the product, but explains that the pendant pairs with a user’s smartphone via Bluetooth and collects information about the user’s daily activities through voice recordings. “When connected via Bluetooth, your friend is constantly listening and forming your inner thoughts,” the site states. Through this data collection, the “friend” develops “thoughts” about the user’s activities and shares them with you via automated text messages.
Presumably the data the device records is stored locally, but there’s nothing on the site that specifically proves this. The site’s privacy policy contains vague language about data collection, reading, “The personal information we collect depends on the context of your interactions with us and our Services, the choices you make, and the products and features you use.” Further down, the policy also states that it doesn’t collect “sensitive information,” but doesn’t explain what constitutes “sensitive information.” Gizmodo has reached out to the company for further answers and will update this post if we receive one.
Friend is the latest innovation to come from the AI hardware market, which has been a much-struggled part of the overall AI industry. First there was Humane, which tried to pitch a conversational wearable “AI Pin” as a smartphone replacement. The product has since been called a “huge flop” and executives are already considering selling the company. Then came Rabbit R1, which initially drew a lot of buzz but has since been described as a “half-baked” experiment that didn’t work as advertised.
It’s somewhat understandable that Friend would want to keep expectations low after failing to deliver on big promises in previous ventures, but the product still seems a bit scammy — with so little of the actual service Friend is offering, it’s hard to imagine what their business plans are for the years to come.
Similarly, because the device’s primary relevance, as Shiffman noted, seems to be loneliness, and because it serves as a substitute for real human connection, wearing such a device seems to signal to others that you’re a bit of a loser. Unlike “friend” or “romance” chatbots that you can enjoy in the privacy of your own home, wearing a “loner’s charm” around your neck in public may be somewhat less appealing to an introverted user base.
If anything, the device seems destined to function commercially as a short-term cash cow driven by the cynical purchasing behavior of Gen Z: “Hey, I bought you Friends because you desperately want Friends, ha ha.” It may be at this level of commerce that Friends will find its footing.
