This isn’t a joke, though it almost seems like one. It uses Llama 3.1, and supposedly the conversation data stays on the device and gets forgotten over time (through what the founder calls a rolling “context window”).
The implementation is interesting, and you can see the founder talking about earlier prototypes and project goals in interviews from several months ago.
iOS only, for now.
Edit: Apparently, you can build your own for around $50 that runs on ChatGPT instead of Llama. I’m sure you could also figure out how to switch it to the LLM of your choice.
Check the edit for instructions on how to build your own. It’s even called “Friend,” so “friend” is likely a modified version of that (ChatGPT vs Llama, respectively).
I would certainly feel better about it if I had full control over the encryption endpoints, at a minimum.