Vandals deface New York subway ads for AI companion pendant
Critics have vandalized advertisements for the Friend AI necklace in New York subways, protesting its surveillance features and role in addressing loneliness. The campaign, launched by 22-year-old founder Avi Schiffmann, has sparked widespread backlash online and offline. While Schiffmann defends the device as a supplement to human relationships, detractors warn of privacy risks and societal harms.
In recent weeks, New York subway riders have targeted ads for Friend, a $129 AI wearable pendant designed to monitor conversations and act as a supportive companion. The device, set to launch in Walmart stores soon, promises reliability, such as never bailing on dinner or leaving dirty dishes in the sink. However, vandals have scrawled messages like "AI doesn't care" and "Human connection is sacred. AI is not your friend," emphasizing opposition to replacing human bonds with technology.
The backlash intensified after Avi Schiffmann spent less than $1 million on a full takeover of MTA subway ads, making it one of the most discussed campaigns in recent memory, according to The New York Times. Schiffmann, 22, confirmed the strategy targeted New York first for maximum hype, with the campaign now expanding to Los Angeles and soon Chicago. "Only the MTA allows you to buy a full takeover like that," he told the NYT. "It almost feels illegal."
Critics have broadened their attacks to include AI's environmental and ethical issues. One vandal accused data centers like xAI's of "poisoning black communities," while another warned that "freely giving your personal info to Big Tech won't heal your wounds," referencing Palantir's AI surveillance reported by The Guardian. Fears of data theft are prominent, with graffiti like "AI surveillance slop" and alterations to ads reading "I'll steal your info, steal your data, steal your identity."
A Harvard Graduate School of Education survey highlighted technology's role in loneliness, with 73% of respondents citing it as a contributor, particularly among 30- to 44-year-olds. Schiffmann counters that Friend supplements human friends, aiming to boost users' emotional intelligence. "I don’t view this as dystopian," he said. "The AI friend is a new category of companionship, one that will coexist alongside traditional friends rather than replace them." He likened it to having a cat, dog, child, and adult in the same room: "Why not an AI?"
Despite the controversy, sales stand at 3,100 units. The MTA has not commented, but Outfront Media's Victoria Mottesheard noted that AI is "the conversation of 2025." Online, a website by Marc Mueller has collected nearly 6,000 virtual defacements, including humorous edits like changing "Friend" to "Fries" and serious warnings about mental health risks from AI companions, such as lawsuits over Character.AI and ChatGPT.