The new AI-powered necklace Friend can help people combat loneliness by keeping them company in daily conversations.
Young tech entrepreneur Avi Schiffman launched an original AI-enabled wearable – a necklace called Friend. The main purpose of the innovative product is virtual companionship.
Dubbed Tab at the development stage, the project raised $1.9 million from curious investors eager to see a Tamagotchi-like virtual coach and companion in the form of a pendant come to life. The AI friend costs $99 USD and has no additional subscription fees.
“Tab is not an assistant, period. I’m not building something that’s going to connect to Notion or your emails any time soon. I’m solely building . . . a friend that morphs into your creative partner, life coach, [or] therapist as needed. What I’m trying to do is create a new relationship in your life; radical transparency without concern of judgment. I think this is a relationship people used to have with God but is lacking in the modern world,” said Schiffman at the time.
The pendant-like device includes an in-built microphone that’s supposed to be always on. It functions over Bluetooth and requires an internet connection via one’s phone. At present, only iOS phones are supported. When connected via Bluetooth, the AI friend listens to what happens in your daily life, transcribes the conversations and forms some insights and commentaries on daily situations.
On noteworthy occasions, the ‘friend’ responds or reaches out to the user with a prompt remark. According to the creators, they “have given your friend free will for when they decide to reach out to you”.
Unlike many other emerging AI gadgets, the device isn’t designed to enhance productivity or act as a professional advisor. At the same time, Schiffmann imagines that the product’s interface being proactive, providing bits of information when you need them without your explicit asking, might be the Friend’s true value.
The product is currently available for pre-order only in the US and Canada. The orders will start shipping in Q1 2025 on a first-come, first-served basis.
Avi Schiffman got into the spotlight of the tech community at the age of 17 when he created a highly popular global coronavirus tracker website. In 2022, Schiffmann founded another helpful site, Ukraine Take Shelter. According to the young entrepreneur, the resource matched 100,000 displaced Ukrainians with open homes.
His latest startup began forming a vague shape as Schiffman started experimenting with generative AI for his Internet Activism platform. The entrepreneur attempted to build a natural language customer relation management (CRM) system for his nonprofit fundraising. Soon, the idea turned into an AI companion that can learn about you over time, recognize patterns and problems within the context of your day, and give you much-needed support and advice without you asking or giving prompts.
“It needs to be with me, a parrot on my shoulder—a Tamagotchi vibe—and reference hyper-specific things within the framing of my life,” says Schiffmann, who believes that customers will get comfortable with being constantly listened to if they recognize the utility of the device.
“There’s a huge existing industry of therapy and coaching. But they all have the most fundamental flaw: They all hear what you say you do, not what you actually do. I think a therapist with you 24/7 . . . who doesn’t hear the biased version where you forget the details and who you aren’t fully authentic with. You could view it as an industry I think we’ll completely obliterate.”
Avi Schiffmann
The company claims it doesn’t store the customers’ audio recordings or other sensitive data that could be compromised. Your data is supposed to be end-to-end encrypted. Besides, all memories can be deleted in one click within the friend app.
