# Avi Schiffmann

> Avi Schiffmann is a 23-year-old American technologist and founder who first went viral at 17 when his hand-built COVID-19 tracker hit 36 million daily users. He dropped out of Harvard after one semester, built Ukraine Take Shelter to house 100,000 refugees, then bet nearly his entire $2.5M seed round on a single domain - spending $1.88M on friend.com. His company Friend makes a $99 AI pendant that listens to your life and texts back like a companion, sparking a national debate about loneliness, surveillance, and what it means to connect.

- **Role:** CEO and Founder at Friend
- **Organizations:** Friend, Internet Activism, Ukraine Take Shelter
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** High School, Mercer Island High School, Dropped out after one semester, Harvard University
- **Known for:** Built ncov2019.live at age 17, which peaked at 36 million daily users and was used by epidemiologists worldwide, Received Webby Person of the Year award presented personally by Dr. Anthony Fauci in May 2020, Appeared as a WIRED25 speaker at age 17

## Career timeline

- **2019** — Launched ncov2019.live COVID-19 tracking dashboard as a 17-year-old high school student in Mercer Island, WA
- **2020** — COVID tracker peaked at 36 million daily users; received Webby Person of the Year award presented by Dr. Anthony Fauci; appeared as WIRED25 speaker
- **2021** — Enrolled at Harvard University
- **2022** — Dropped out of Harvard; co-built Ukraine Take Shelter with Marco Burstein in three days, claiming to match 100,000 displaced Ukrainians with host homes
- **2022** — Founded Internet Activism nonprofit with Tyler Cowen's Emergent Ventures funding
- **2022-2023** — Built earthquake-relief platform for Turkey victims; built tools supporting Black Lives Matter protesters
- **2023** — Moved to San Francisco at age 20; launched Tab, an AI assistant amulet priced at $600
- **2024** — Rebranded Tab as Friend; spent $1.88M of $2.3M funding on acquiring friend.com domain; raised approximately $2.5M total (later ~$7M)
- **2025-10** — Launched $950K NYC subway ad campaign with 11,000 placements - claimed largest ever MTA campaign; ads widely vandalized, Schiffmann celebrated the graffiti
- **2025-11** — Major profile pieces in SF Standard and CNN; product faces significant public backlash; Schiffmann deletes Instagram after antisemitic abuse
- **2026** — Self-financed documentary 'Making Friends' in post-production; planning expansion ads in LA, Chicago, Paris, then Asia; retail expansion planned

## Achievements

- Built ncov2019.live at age 17, which peaked at 36 million daily users and was used by epidemiologists worldwide
- Received Webby Person of the Year award presented personally by Dr. Anthony Fauci in May 2020
- Appeared as a WIRED25 speaker at age 17
- Co-built Ukraine Take Shelter in 72 hours, claiming to connect 100,000 Ukrainian refugees with host homes
- Purchased friend.com domain for $1.88M - a domain dormant for 17 years
- Raised approximately $7M in venture capital for Friend from investors including Pace Capital, Caffeinated Capital, and Solana founders
- Self-financed documentary 'Making Friends' currently in post-production

## Latest updates

- **2026-05** — Friend retail expansion in planning; documentary 'Making Friends' in post-production, aiming for Toronto International Film Festival premiere (fall 2026)
- **2025-11** — Major profile coverage in SF Standard and CNN Business amid backlash to Friend product; deleted Instagram after antisemitic messages
- **2025-10** — Launched $950K NYC subway ad campaign that became a focal point for public backlash against AI companionship technology
- **2024-07** — Secured approximately $7M in total venture funding; completed acquisition of friend.com domain for $1.88M

## Links

- Website: https://friend.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avi-schiffmann
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/AviSchiffmann
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avischiffmann/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/avi-schiffmann
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-14