AI assistant Hark's $1 million free-pizza stunt backfires with surprise charges and inbox access

Hark, the AI assistant app led by Brett Adcock, ran into charging errors and privacy complaints after promising $1 million worth of free pizza to celebrate its launch.

On Oct. 16, Hark invited U.S. users to type "order a free pizza" into the app. Its offer terms show the deal was a $30 DoorDash gift card funded by Hark, with delivery fees, taxes and tip possibly left for the user. The flow also asks users to connect a Gmail or Outlook inbox, though that step is optional.

X filled with posts from people who said they were charged anyway. "am i the first human ever to get robbed by an ai?" wrote Allen Wang, drawing 3,700 likes and a Community Note saying the gift card often failed to apply at checkout, sometimes leaving a full charge, and that Hark acknowledged a temporary bug.

Aaron Makelky posted his Hark data export: after less than 48 hours, the app held 934 Gmail messages, 415 calendar events and 177 contacts. Hark closed the promotion on Oct. 17, saying tens of thousands of pizzas had been delivered.