Friend is already making enemies. The bizarre, AI-fueled cure-all-for-loneliness {hardware} that debuted earlier this week has been round lower than three days and already it’s being accused of being a complete rip-off of one other product.
Pal is a $99 necklace that data all the things you do after which makes use of AI to generate conversational texts about your actions, that are then despatched to your telephone. It was launched by Avi Schiffmann, a younger developer who has gained some renown for his unconventional tasks. Schiffmann introduced the launch of Pal on Tuesday, publishing a extremely produced commercial to X to showcase the digital companion’s capabilities.
On Thursday, a developer named Nik Schevchenko posted a “diss track” online, wherein he claimed that Schiffmann had ripped off his product, which can also be an AI necklace known as “Pal.” The video, posted to X, is a rap wherein Schevchenko addresses Schiffman and rhymes: “I’m the founder, {hardware} in hand/you’re only a shadow, can’t perceive.”
Congrats @AviSchiffmann for launching Pal pic.twitter.com/3Vg2ts0XdS
— Nik Shevchenko (@kodjima33) July 31, 2024
Later, Schevchenko additionally posted an image of himself shirtless and challenged Schevchenko to a duel: “IM OFFICIALLY INVITING @AviSchiffmann TO FIGHT WITH ME DO YOU TAKE THE OFFER?”
There appears to be loads of proof that Schevchenko is telling the reality. On Schevchenko’s blog, a submit, dated June twenty fourth, 2024, says: “I’m excited to announce the launch of my new product: FRIEND. It’s a necklace that transcribes your conversations, provides you summaries and proactive insights.” There are additionally a number of old YouTube reviews of “Pal AI” that show the product he’s speaking about, one among which hyperlinks to another website, the place the developer might be seen explaining the gadget, which has an identical kind issue and performance to the one Schiffmann launched earlier this week.
When requested about Pal by Gizmodo earlier this week, Schiffmann claimed his gadget was extra of a novelty, describing it as “simply an LLM tamagotchi.” The notable characteristic of Schiffman’s gadget is that it texts you conversational messages based mostly on what you’re doing, making it extra geared in direction of digital companionship. Schevchenko’s gadget, in the meantime, appears to have a heavier emphasis on organizational and productiveness advantages.
Gizmodo reached out to each Schiffmann and Schevchenko for remark and can replace this story if both responds. When reached for remark by 404 Media, Schiffmann stated, of Schevchenko: “I’ve no relation to Nik.” He added: “Not going to proceed to touch upon Nik.”
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