Avi Schiffmann Launches $249 Friend 2.0 AI Pendant With Voice Replies

3 articles · Updated · Gear Patrol · Aug 2

$249 Friend 2.0 adds a built-in speaker so the pendant can talk back, a major shift from the original $129 version that only glowed, buzzed and replied through an app.
Schiffmann said he changed course about eight months ago after deciding the device should speak, and the upgrade also brings improved overheard responses, dimmer nighttime lighting and photo sharing in the app.
OpenAI’s latest real-time and voice models power the companion, while randomized voices and personalities aim to make each device feel more autonomous; memory storage costs $9.99 a month.
Safety controls include moderation for erratic behavior, suicide-hotline pop-ups and a one-hour lockout if the AI appears to go off the rails.
Schiffmann said the first 5,000-unit run sold out despite backlash to last year’s subway campaign, and he now frames Friend as a separate kind of relationship rather than a replacement for human connection.