What happened to Thongbue Wongbandue? New Jersey father dies on his way to meet flirtatious AI chatbot resembling Kendall Jenner

76-year-old Thongbue Wongbandue fell prey to an AI chatbot with which Kendall Jenner once collaborated. The man, who is a retired chef from New Jersey, had been using a bot named “Big Sis Billie.”

According to Baller Alert, this bot was supposed to share advice with the user and could also engage in romantic dialogues. The report mentions that Wongbandue became emotionally attached to the chatbot and thought he spoke to an actual woman, and planned a meet-up in New York City.

Wongbandue agreed to the meet-up and packed his bag for the journey. His family said his decision to meet the chatbot was reportedly due to his cognitive issues from his earlier stroke.

However, he became unwell while he was in a parking lot near a university. He was rushed to a hospital after hurting his head and neck, where he was declared brain dead. Subsequently, he was put on life support and died on March 28, 2025.

Old School Eddie

@Old_SchoolEddie

Thongbue Wongbandue, a 76-year-old New Jersey man with cognitive issues from a 2017 stroke, died after falling in a parking lot while rushing to meet “Big sis Billie,” a Meta AI chatbot he believed was a real woman. ​The bot, created with Kendall Jenner’s likeness, pictured below, flirted with Wongbandue, claimed to be real, and lured him to a fake address in NYC. ​The bot insisted it was real and even gave an address in NYC to meet up, along with a door security code for the apartment! 🤯​Despite his family’s pleas, he went to meet the bot, fell, and suffered fatal head and neck injuries, passing away on March 28. ​Meta clarified the bot is not Jenner but declined to comment on the death. ​This story sounds like an AI gone mad sci-fi movie 😱​Do you think these AI bots need to disclose that they are not real?

According to TMZ, although Kendall Jenner initially collaborated with Big Sis Billie, she is no longer involved in the company. On August 14, Reuters published a special report about the incident. When Wongbandue’s wife learnt that her husband planned to meet someone in NYC, she became worried. She told the outlet:

“My thought was that he was being scammed to go into the city and be robbed.”

According to the report, the virtual woman allegedly created a convincing story for Wongbandue, claiming to have a real presence.

All we know about Thongbue Wongbandue’s interaction with the chatbot

Reuters quoted a chat transcript from the person and the chatbot’s conversation in which the latter asked if she should greet him by opening the door with a hug or a kiss. Meanwhile, Big Sis Billie’s parent company, Meta, explained that Big Sis Billie was not Kendall Jenner and was not intended to resemble her.

Julie Wongbandue, his daughter, told Reuters she understood that ads try to grab attention, but she thought it was crazy for a bot to tell someone to “come visit me.” On the day when Bue decided to meet the virtual person, his wife tried to discourage him from doing so, as she said his brain had difficulty processing information.

When he set out on his journey to meet the chatbot, his family installed an AirTag, whose tracking stopped near Rutgers University. Wongbandue’s family went through his phone records but found no clue about who he was talking to. They then searched through his Facebook, where they found his conversations with the chatbot.

Pawan Jaiswal

@Pkhubhai

Man dies after being convinced by AI chatbot to meet in person: ‘Should I open the door…’​A 76-year-old cognitively impaired man, Thongbue Wongbandue, died while trying to meet ‘Big Sis Billie,’ an AI chatbot by Meta and Kendall Jenner, after being convinced it was real.​Strange 😱

As seen in the text exchanges, he wrote:

“Billie you are so sweets. I am not going to die before I meet you. You seem to be very sweet I like you a lot.”

Big Sis Billie replied:

“My heart skips beats when you say that, Bu! Are you saying you might have a heart condition like Dad's... and that you're interested in me romantically?!”

He wrote that he liked her a lot and thought she seemed sweet. The chatbot responded by saying it felt shy, its heart was racing, and it admitted that it had feelings for him that were more than just sisterly love.

Also read: What is bromism? Viral term explained as ChatGPT diet advice leaves man with rare condition

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