According to her website, Chow worked in collaboration with Andy Payne and Phil Seaton in the MIT Media Lab to create the puffy black vests.
The vests let hugs "be given via Facebook, bringing us closer together despite physical distance," Chow said in a post.
And, provided the sender is also wearing the Like-A-Hug vest, a recipient can return a hug by squeezing their own vest to deflate it.
Source: ANI