My Friend Has No Soul
The article reviews the 'Friend 2', an AI-powered chatbot pendant that aims to act as a digital companion. The author details technical frustrations with the device's always-listening feature and its tendency to interrupt conversations.
Why it matters
It reflects the growing consumer skepticism and technical challenges surrounding wearable AI hardware and privacy-invasive smart devices.
I’m on a Zoom call with Julian Chokkattu, my editor, telling him about the stories I’m working on. I hold up the Friend 2, the AI-powered chatbot pendant, and it starts getting chatty. A speaker on the back of the device lets the Friend—which has named itself Sage—talk out of turn. It starts responding as if I’m talking to it. We laugh, then I ask it to be quiet.
“Understood, going silent now,” Sage says. “No more commentary unless you tap me back in.”
“OK, great,” I say.
“Stopping now,” Sage says. “No more talking unless you clearly bring me back.”
“Please stop,” I plead.
“Yeah, that’s a bad look for me,” Sage says. “I’m done.”
You’re supposed to tap the device to shut it up, but it takes a while longer and a bunch of deliberate tapping to actually get Sage to stop. Eventually, she mercifully zips it.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in