by Peter Nielsen
Yesterday morning, I received a text asking me to download a new social media app called Homie. Without even downloading the app, it asked for an Instagram handle and offered to connect all my social media applications, music streaming platforms and even apps like DoorDash under one hub.
Those versed in cybersecurity know there’s safety in keeping data separate. While many social media platforms make your information public without specifically telling you they’re doing so, there is a degree of safety in keeping your data split across the different platforms you use.
I first saw people tabling for Homie on Monday. Signs called upon students to come get free donuts, coffee and energy drinks. Multiple times throughout the day, there were lines of people at these tables signing up on their phones.
After reaching out to students about it, the predominant opinion was fear.
“Someone sent [the app] to me and I got scared to open it,” One student said.
Another student had a similar reaction.
“That shit scares me so bad,” the student said. “How easily people are handing over all that data.”
The concern is present with a certain portion of the student body, but evidently not enough. The donuts kept moving, the lines at the tables stayed ever-present and by that evening, another Homie-touting table had appeared at the top of the stairs that descend to the Jolly Giant Commons, having moved on from donuts and now sporting case upon case of Celsius energy drinks.
And then, the other shoe dropped. The Homie Instagram account’s bio read, “OpenAI’s new social app.”
There’s an ill-feeling on campus towards everything regarding artificial intelligence. Continued or increased reliance on AI could endanger the prospective livelihoods of many Cal Poly students. This same reliance both currently and directly endangers our environment, and thus, our futures.
When I approached students and asked if they knew about Homie’s connection to OpenAI, a spokesperson on the other side of the table told me to “just walk away.” To avoid confrontation, I did so, but a member of Homie’s startup team followed me and spent about two or three minutes giving me a statement explicitly denying that OpenAI was an owner of Homie or its parent company, Relatent Inc.
But a webpage entitled “Homie Campus Launch Strategy,” published on Sept. 15, summarizes Homie as, “OpenAI’s new social platform targeting college students for Fall 2025”.
It also confirms that Homie is a social platform built by OpenAI. For not owning Homie, OpenAI is far too present. The document mentions that campus launch directors — student hires
making $18/hour — would play a major role in unlocking access to the student body with the responsibility of reporting feedback to Homie on how well it has been adopted by students.”
Altogether, a near-militant set of marching orders. Target students; report back.
I asked Jeremy Nielsen, a certificated IT professional and student of cybersecurity at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, for some insight. He described a seemingly intentional lack of transparency around Homie-affiliated domains.
“Sounds like an OpenAI gimmick to ‘centralize’ your feed as a flimsy cover for ‘give us your data’,” Nielsen wrote. “It’s a really slick trick, redirecting [the websites] … nobody can actually find them. This is definitely sketchy.”
Additionally, Homie’s Terms Of Service (TOS) contain dangerous language.
“Relatent Inc. has the right but not the obligation to monitor and edit all Content provided by users,” states one of the Homie terms. “[You agree not to] take any action that may damage or falsify Company rating.”
This allows the company to change what users post on their platform, but absolves them of any moderation responsibilities. Users risk incurring legal repercussions if they act in a way that negatively impacts the company’s rating. Other concerning elements of the TOS regard deletion of user data and release of liability by the user, and chiefly, Relatent’s reservation of the right to share your data with partner companies — namely OpenAI. The problem with many services’ TOS is that users often accept them without reading and are left unaware of the dangers.
“From a data privacy [and] security standpoint, this platform is a complete nightmare, and they will absolutely exploit it as much as they can,” Nielsen said. “It is a very thinly veiled way to gather data to a place where OpenAI can use it for training GenAI models and could be easily exploited to push an agenda and attack or silence those who oppose that agenda.”
A cybersecurity nightmare, then. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Whether it’s an energy drink, a cup of coffee, or a donut, you’ll pay for it somehow. With Homie, the price you pay is your data’s use by OpenAI. Homie’s entire operation is underhanded and endangers student privacy on campus. Their terms of service leave you vulnerable, and your data trains AI. Still want that donut?
Peter Nielsen is a young writer and activist at Cal Poly Humboldt. He enjoys advocating for sustainability and student rights.
Peter Nielsen (he/him/any) is a freshman at Cal Poly Humboldt and an avid writer and poet. He is double majoring in Theatre and Computer Science. He is deeply passionate about environmental and humanistic topics.
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