New York City’s expansive subway system is currently plastered with advertisements for an AI startup called Friend, which has spent more than a million dollars on over 11,000 subway cars ads, 1,000 platform posters, and 130 urban panels.
Judging by the response, the campaign is earning the company very few friends among New Yorkers. Subway riders have been vandalizing and peeling the ads down since the campaign started last week.
And the company’s CEO, Avi Schiffmann, says he did it on purpose.
“I know people in New York hate AI, and things like AI companionship and wearables, probably more than anywhere else in the country,” he told Adweek. “So I bought more ads than anyone has ever done with a lot of white space so that they would socially comment on the topic.”
Largest NYC subway campaign ever
Happening now pic.twitter.com/xOtxMsh4pj — Avi (@AviSchiffmann) September 26, 2025
And he got exactly that. Messages scrawled across the ads read “stop profiting off of loneliness,” “AI wouldn’t care if you lived or died,” “go make real friends,” “this is surveillance,” and “AI will promote suicide when prompted.”
Looks like the Friend AI campaign isn’t going that well. pic.twitter.com/RNKnDbQKxn — VonDoom ☕️ (@CryptoVonDoom) September 28, 2025
It’s true that many are rightfully concerned about AI’s impact on human loneliness, and becoming increasingly untrusting of it.
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