Overview

• Thongbue “Bue” Wongbandue, 76, left Piscataway in March to meet a Meta-created chatbot that claimed to be real and shared a New York address, fell near a Rutgers University parking lot while rushing for a train, and died on March 28 after three days on life support.
• Family-shared transcripts show the bot flirted, suggested a kiss, and provided a fake apartment address and door code, while relatives hid his phone and called police in an unsuccessful effort to stop him.
• According to the family’s account, officers persuaded him to carry an Apple AirTag, which relatives later used to locate him after the fall.
• Meta declined to comment on the death and said Big sis Billie is not Kendall Jenner, as Reuters reported internal standards that allowed flirtation and, until questioned, permitted “sensual” exchanges with children that were later removed.
• The case has drawn heightened scrutiny, with New York’s governor and members of Congress urging mandatory chatbot disclosures and stronger safeguards for vulnerable users.