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Creator of Bird Bot, the tool that lets people snatch up Switch units as soon as their in stock, talks about the backlash he's received

He doesn't seem to care too much
by rawmeatcowboy
27 April 2020
GN Version 5.0

The creator of Bird Bot has been getting a lot of heat lately. This tool lets people grab Switch units as soon as new stock arrives at online retailers. Many scalpers are using the tool to secure Switch units, and then sell them for triple the price on reseller sites. How does the creator of the tool feel? The 16-year-old shared his thoughts with the Washington Post.

“Some people were calling me a scalper. It’s just basic supply and demand.”

While the teen behind Bird Bot has a rather cavalier response to the situation, his parents are taking it a bit more seriously. The teen's mom talked about backlash as well.

“He wasn’t really prepared for how this took off. He’s been blamed for causing hoarding of the Switches. He’s gotten angry messages, requests for interviews — and someone even tried to steal his code and pass it off as his own. My husband and I have helped him understand that there are valid complaints to be made. His actions have had consequences that he hadn’t thought about, sure. In some cases, you could alter the bot and snatch up toilet paper with it. It’s true that resellers are selling the devices at a huge markup.”

[Link]