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Friend CEO says it's been 'quite entertaining' after his AI companion startup spent $1 million on subway ads that were immediately defaced

As the saying goes, "All publicity is good publicity." Friend CEO Avi Schiffman said the response to his company's seven-figure ad buy for the New York City subway has been "entertaining" during ...
AOL

New Yorkers defaced subway ads for Friend's AI wearable. Then Heineken joined the fray with a cheeky billboard.

When an AI wearable's ad campaign sparked backlash in New York City, Heineken said: Hold my beer. Friend, the company behind an AI companion you wear around your neck, spent over $1 million to plaster ...
Ars Technica

Vandals deface ads for AI necklaces that listen to all your conversations

“AI doesn’t care,” a vandal scrawled on a New York subway ad promoting a wearable AI pendant called Friend, which was designed to monitor a user’s everyday conversations and serve as a companion “who ...
Gizmodo

Embattled AI Startup ‘Friend’ Pivots to Website to More Easily Exploit Lonely People

Friend has managed to lock down a dubious honor in the nascent artificial-intelligence era: it is perhaps without peer as the most-hated AI device available. After getting its million-dollar ad ...