Some ideas start with a strategic roadmap.
Others start with: “Wouldn’t it be hilarious if…”
This is the story of the second kind.
Ronen Isaac, Boring Lab Co-Founder, spends most of his time building tools to make security system management less boring. But one day, while hitting golf balls with Axis Rep Chad Lincoln, he had a new idea that was sure to surprise and delight:
“What if I could get my surveillance camera to verbally roast people as they walked by AND tell them to scram!?”
A few experiments, some AI magic, and several fits of laughter later, we had a working prototype. We call it RoastGuard—a security system that not only detects motion, but offers its unsolicited opinion on your fashion choices while doing it.
The first time it worked, someone in a floral shirt and black cardigan walked by.
The system piped up:
“Hey, floral shirt with the black cardigan! You look like my grandmother’s couch came to life and learned to walk! Beat it before security mistakes you for abandoned furniture!”
We lost it. And yes—it was hilarious. But it also got us thinking.
We started to notice that when the system called someone out directly—especially with something oddly specific like “you in the grey hoodie”—they didn’t just laugh. Some stopped in their tracks. Some left. Fast.
That’s when we realized this wasn’t just a prank—it had teeth.
“I built it because it made me and my kids laugh. I kept it because it made people leave. Turns out, a roast from a security camera is more effective than any motion light or alarm.” — Ronen Isaac, CEO of The Boring Lab
When a security system responds with personalized feedback, it creates a sense of being seen in a way most deterrents don’t. It’s not just a light flashing or a generic alarm—it’s a voice calling you out, specifically.
And for someone who’s thinking about doing something they shouldn’t be, that’s a whole new level of unsettling.
The idea of using AI to analyze and verbalize details about a person in real time isn’t just entertaining—it’s effective.
At The Boring Lab, our whole mission is to make managing video security systems less boring—whether that means building time-saving tools for Milestone XProtect or experimenting with AI to see what happens when your camera develops a personality.
This little side project is the perfect example of that.
What began as a joke has evolved into a new kind of security tool—one that doesn’t just observe, but engages. RoastGuard flips the script on traditional deterrents by turning quiet surveillance into a talking point (literally), using observational humor to keep things light—and intruders on edge.
Because sometimes, the best way to keep people out… is to call them out.
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