Friend, the AI pendant maker that faced a major protest in New York City nine months ago over concerns about technology dependence, has relaunched its product with a speaker feature that allows it to talk to users—and the price has doubled from $129 to $249.
The company also now offers a $10 monthly subscription that extends the pendant's ability to remember conversations beyond 30 days.
What happened
Friend, the AI pendant startup, relaunched its product with a built-in speaker that can talk to users, raising the price from $129 to $249. The company also introduced a $10 per month subscription that extends conversation memory beyond 30 days.
Why it matters
Friend had become a symbol of tech dependence after a large protest in New York City nine months earlier, where demonstrators targeted the company's heavy advertising spend in the subway. The relaunch with a costlier product and subscription model shows the company is doubling down on the concept despite the public backlash.
What to watch
The new speaker feature and subscription tier represent a significant shift in the product's functionality and business model. Whether users accept the doubled price point and recurring fee after the earlier public criticism remains to be seen.
Friend, an AI pendant startup, relaunched its product on the morning the news broke, introducing it through a new advertisement showing two people having personal conversations with their Friend pendants. The key addition is a speaker, enabling the pendant to speak aloud to users rather than only sending text messages.
The original Friend pendant launched at $129, but the new version with the speaker feature costs $249—a $120 increase. The company also introduced a $10 monthly subscription option that extends the pendant's conversation memory beyond the standard 30-day window. Founder Avi Schiffmann referred to the updated device as "Friend 2.0" on social media, though the product remains listed simply as "Friend" on the company's website.
The relaunch occurs roughly nine months after a significant public protest in New York City targeted the company. The protest drew attention to growing dependence on technology, and Friend became the focal point because of the substantial amount it had invested in advertising throughout the city's subway system. Friend had spent $1.8 million（約2.9億円） of its $2.5 million（約4億円） in total funding to acquire the domain friend.com. Remarkably, Schiffmann both posted an image promoting the protest and attended the event himself, showing an acknowledgment of the public criticism directed at the company.
Friend's relaunch comes against the backdrop of significant public resistance to the company's original product and marketing approach. The startup had burned through $1.8 million（約2.9億円） of its $2.5 million（約4億円） in funding to acquire the domain friend.com and spent heavily on advertisements throughout the New York City subway system. This aggressive promotion prompted a large protest nine months prior, where demonstrators gathered to voice concerns about growing dependence on technology, with Friend as the obvious focal point of their message. Notably, founder Avi Schiffmann not only acknowledged the protest but appeared at it himself, suggesting some awareness of the criticism.
The relaunch strategy appears to lean further into the product's capabilities rather than address the underlying concerns that sparked the protest. By adding a speaker—transforming the pendant from a text-based interface to a voice-enabled one—and introducing a subscription tier, Friend is positioning itself as a more intimate companion device. However, the doubled price point and new recurring fee structure may face skepticism from consumers who have already seen the company's contentious path to market.
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