AppLovin retweeted
AppLovin retweeted
I wanted to share a little about Gist, and why we’re building it.
When I first started thinking about the project, one direction I considered was an AI companion or assistant. There are real needs those products can serve. The question I kept coming back to was how to build something durable when so much of its capability depends on an underlying model you don’t own. I didn’t have a convincing answer for what we would build.
At the same time, I was becoming more interested in what AI might make possible for a small team building a social platform.
Social media is an established business, but starting something new has historically required substantial resources across engineering, product, content, and marketing. By late 2025, it seemed increasingly possible that AI could lower some of those barriers.
Many of the technical problems have known solutions. Putting them together well is still a lot of work. But I thought it was worth exploring whether a small team could now do that work with much more limited resources.
That would only get us part of the way. A product can work well and still give people little reason to use it. Building a community, earning trust, and creating something people want to return to are questions we have to answer through the experience itself.
There is a natural connection with AppLovin’s business and technology. That helped make the idea worth pursuing. But what has made it more meaningful to me is the people we’ve met along the way.
At a recent dinner with Gist creators, I heard people talk about why they share what they know. They wanted to be useful, help someone through a problem, or bring a perspective that might make another person’s life a little better. I left thinking about how much that sense of purpose matters.
That is the kind of place we hope Gist can become. Somewhere people find ideas worth their time, and where creators can build something meaningful and sustainable around what they have to offer.
We can build the technology, but the people who bring their ideas and communities will give Gist its character. We have to keep listening and let what we learn shape the product.
Gist is now available on iOS and Android, with a 4.7 rating on the US App Store. We’re still early in user acquisition and aren’t pushing aggressively to grow. We’re using this period to understand what people value and where we need to do better.
Some of the most encouraging feedback has come from people who say Gist has given them a renewed sense of purpose in creating, or helped them feel better about their lives. It’s early, and we shouldn’t read too much into it. But it is meaningful to hear, and it gives us a reason to keep working.
If you give Gist a try, I’d be interested to hear what you think.
iOS: apps.apple.com/us/app/gist-l…
Android: play.google.com/store/apps/d…
Ten years ago, Sam Turgeon was a college dropout living in his mom’s basement.
He was tired all the time and had a hunch breakfast was to blame, so he and his co-founder started mixing powders.
Everyone, his mom included, wanted to know what he was doing with his life.
He went all in anyway. Those basement powders became HOLOS, and today it’s an eight-figure business selling across North America.
Helping businesses grow is the core of what we do, and stories like this never get old.
A look back at @beanstalkHQ in NYC. 🎬
As Official Advertising Partner, we joined founders and industry leaders from across the disruptor brand community for great conversations, new connections, and a little ROAS Stacker competition.
Thanks to everyone who joined us!
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