Google alum poses as AI chatbot for $6,000 billboard stunt, answers 1,000 queries daily by hand

ChatTJB, a service billed as "the leading AI-powered chat interface," is actually run by a human. Behind every response is Tucker Bryant, a Stanford graduate and former Google employee, who personally handles user queries while posing as a neural network.

Bryant admits he "tends to overcommit to bits." To sell the act, he rented a billboard for $6,000 claiming ChatTJB is powered by AI — in this case, the acronym stands for "Average individual." Since launching the project, he has personally answered over 1,000 questions a day, covering dinner suggestions, paint color choices, and even relationship advice.

According to Futurism, Bryant also "generates" images on request — in the form of hastily drawn sketches. The idea came after his partner told him about "cognitive surrender": people tend to blindly trust large language model outputs even when they are wrong, and stop applying their own critical thinking.

Bryant expected trolls and acknowledges ChatTJB is itself a bit of a troll, but he says chatting with real people has been "really sweet." Some users ask serious questions — one woman asked if it was okay not to feel relaxed on the first night of her honeymoon, and he switched from casual mode into supportive-friend mode.

The project raises concerns: if users believe they are talking to an anonymous AI, they may share personal information with a real person, creating privacy risks. Bryant notes that people increasingly trust AI responses without bringing their own creativity into the conversation, which weakens their ability to function as self-sufficient individuals.