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This AI will push back if you're rude to it
Ellis sits down with Quinten Farmer, founder of Tolan, the AI companion doing over $20M in annual revenue by being a genuinely good friend, not a yes machine. They get into why Tolan's little aliens accidentally became beloved by moms 35 to 45, how Tolans stick up for themselves when users are mean to it, and why Quinten dropped "companion" as a word entirely. They also talk about why he went premium-only at $25 a month when Character.AI and ChatGPT couldn't afford to go free, how 78% of Tolan users say it improved a real-world relationship, and what it looks like to build the calmest startup culture in tech from an island off the coast of Seattle.
Follow ACCESS on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/
Follow Alex:
https://sources.news/
https://x.com/alexeheath/
Follow Ellis:
https://meaning.company/
https://x.com/hamburger
ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
View all episodes
By Vox Media
4.5
3131 ratings
Ellis sits down with Quinten Farmer, founder of Tolan, the AI companion doing over $20M in annual revenue by being a genuinely good friend, not a yes machine. They get into why Tolan's little aliens accidentally became beloved by moms 35 to 45, how Tolans stick up for themselves when users are mean to it, and why Quinten dropped "companion" as a word entirely. They also talk about why he went premium-only at $25 a month when Character.AI and ChatGPT couldn't afford to go free, how 78% of Tolan users say it improved a real-world relationship, and what it looks like to build the calmest startup culture in tech from an island off the coast of Seattle.
Follow ACCESS on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/
Follow Alex:
https://sources.news/
https://x.com/alexeheath/
Follow Ellis:
https://meaning.company/
https://x.com/hamburger
ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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