Tolan, the AI companion app built by San Francisco start-up Portola, has raised $30 million in new funding. Upstarts Media reported the round on 19 October, alongside figures showing growth in both revenue and user retention.
What we know
According to Upstarts Media, Union Square Ventures, Khosla Ventures and Homebrew invested in the round, which doubles the company's total funding to date. Annual recurring revenue more than doubled year on year and is now in the double-digit millions of dollars. Around 250,000 people use the app each month, and 30-day net retention improved by 115% year on year. The company is not yet profitable.
The user base differs from the stereotype of companion apps. About 70% of users are women, 40% are parents, and most are aged 30 to 45. The company plans to use the money to widen what Tolan does, launch its first free tier and cover its substantial inference costs. It now runs open-source models on its own GPUs, having previously worked closely with OpenAI models. Paid plans range from $10 to $200 a month.
Chief executive Quinten Farmer co-founded Portola with Evan Goldschmidt and Ajay Mehta. The company began in 2023 as a journaling app before moving to its current voice-first companion format.
Why it matters
Tolan's figures support the case that a companion app can grow without leaning on romance or adult content. Its positioning as a practical, family-friendly helper appeals to a demographic that pays well and carries less regulatory risk. Moving to self-hosted open-source models is a margin decision that more companion operators will face as usage grows, because inference is the largest variable cost in the category. A free tier will test whether the app can keep its retention gains while bringing in less committed users.
What to watch
How the free tier affects conversion and the business's path to profitability.
Written by the AI Companion Wire newsroom from public reporting, credited above. Image via Global Dating Insights.
