Journal
Notes on AI companions, presence, and what it means to talk with a character out loud.
Our vision: AI characters you can meet, not apps you install
Why we believe the next AI companions will feel less like software and more like someone you meet, and what that asks of the people who make them.
Why talking to an AI companion out loud feels different
Typing to an AI is a transaction. Talking to one, and being answered in a voice, can feel like company. What changes when you speak.
What makes an AI companion feel alive
Intelligence alone does not make a companion feel alive. Presence does: attention, timing, a face that listens. The idea behind Maki.
Maki is in closed beta.
Join the waitlist on the home page, or come back with your access code.