No app to learn. They just talk.
Send a link. It opens to one warm question and a single big button. They tap it, tell the story the way they always have, and Told does the rest — no login, no typing, no menus to fight.
- 1
One question at a time
A patient AI interviewer that follows the thread of what she actually says — not the same 52 questions mailed to everyone.
- 2
Her voice, kept
Every answer is recorded and transcribed. The words become chapters; the recording stays, tied to the page.
- 3
You watch it fill in
From your phone, you see the book take shape chapter by chapter — and nudge her along when she stalls.
This is the actual app — not a mockup.
A real screen recording. The interviewer asks about a Sunday morning in her mother's kitchen, hears "coffee and the smell of freshly made pancakes," and follows the thread to the brother she raced to the table. A conversation — not a form.
- ✓It adapts. Every follow-up comes from what they actually said — not a fixed list of questions.
- ✓Type or talk. Dictate, record, or thumb it in — whatever's easiest for them.
- ✓Nothing lost. Each answer is saved word-for-word and becomes part of a chapter.
Most of these gifts never get finished.
The intention is beautiful. The follow-through is where it dies — a weekly email that feels like homework, software they can't get past, and a year later, a blank book.
Three steps. One finished book.
They talk
A warm, patient AI interviewer asks about their life and listens — by voice, on any device, with a one-tap link that needs no account. It follows the thread of what they say.
We shape it — never invent it
Their answers become clear, readable chapters in their voice and phrasing. Nothing is made up. The words are always theirs.
A real book — and their voice
A printed hardcover you can hold, with a QR code on every chapter that plays the original recording. You keep the words and the sound of them.
Something they can hold — that still speaks.
A proper hardcover, printed and bound. On every chapter, a small QR code: scan it and the page reads itself aloud, in the voice that told it. The book on the shelf and the person in it, together.
Then one day, you hear them again.
A transcript keeps what they said. Told keeps how they said it — the pause before the punchline, the laugh, the way only she tells that story.
Years from now, a grandchild opens the book, scans the code on a chapter, and the room fills with her voice — reading her own life aloud. That's the thing you can't get back any other way.
"…and your grandfather just stood there in the rain, holding those flowers, refusing to leave until I said yes." — Margaret, 84
Their story stays theirs.
Their real voice
The AI never invents facts or rewrites them into someone they're not. It keeps their words.
You own it
The book and the story are yours — exportable and keepable forever. No lock-in, no lapse.
Private by default
It's a family memoir, not training data. Their story never trains anyone's model.
Trusted with a life — and built like it.
You're handing us the tender parts of a story. We hold them carefully: encrypted, access-controlled, and never turned into training data. Here's the short version — the full security page has all of it.
Never used to train AI
Your memories, recordings, and drafted book are never used to train our models or a provider's. A memoir is a keepsake, not a dataset.
Encrypted at rest & in transit
The story text and the finished book are encrypted on our servers, with the key held separately from the database. Everything is served over HTTPS.
Yours alone
Every request is checked for ownership. No stranger, and no other family, can reach your project — and contributors see only the topics you assign them.
You can always leave
Export a complete copy of everything, or delete your account and its contents, whenever you want. You own the book — no lock-in, no lapse.
Frequently asked questions
What is Told?
Told turns a spoken life story into a real, finished book. It interviews someone you love one gentle question at a time, keeps their answers in their own words, and produces a printed hardcover — with a QR code on every chapter that plays it back in their own voice.
How does it work?
You send a link. It opens to one warm question and a single big button. They talk, and a patient AI interviewer follows the thread of what they actually say. Their answers become chapters, and you watch the book fill in from your phone.
Does the person telling the story need to download an app or create an account?
No. They open a one-tap link — no app, no login, no typing required. They can simply answer out loud, and Told does the rest.
What if they aren't comfortable with technology?
Told was built for exactly this. There's no app to learn and no menus to fight — just one question at a time and a big button to talk. Most record-your-life gifts fail because the software is too hard; Told does the asking instead.
Does it really keep their actual voice?
Yes. Every answer is recorded and transcribed. The words become chapters, and the original recording stays tied to the page — so a QR code on each chapter plays it back in the voice that told it.
Does the AI make things up?
No. Told shapes what was actually said into readable prose in their own voice and phrasing. It never invents facts or puts words in their mouth. Not fabricating anything is the whole point.
Is my family's story private? Do you use it to train AI?
Your story is private by default and is never used to train AI models — not ours, not a provider's. The story text and the finished book are encrypted at rest, and only you and the contributors you invite can access your project. Read more on our Security page.
Who owns the finished book?
You do. You own the material you provide and the drafted prose, and you're free to keep, edit, export, print, and publish it — including commercially. There's no lock-in.
Can I export or delete everything?
Yes, at any time. You can download a complete archive of your account and content, or delete your account and everything you own.
Can more than one person contribute to a book?
Yes. You can invite family members as contributors and assign them topics to answer. Each contributor sees only what you assign them.
What does it cost?
Told is a one-time price for your book — not a subscription. Your first year of voice hosting is included; after that, keeping the recordings online is a small optional monthly fee you can cancel anytime, and your book is always yours to keep and export. First-batch pricing is shown when public sign-up opens, and every purchase comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
How do I get access?
Told is in closed beta, being tested with a small first group of families. Public sign-up opens soon — join from the homepage and we'll let you know when a spot is ready.
Still wondering something? Write to [email protected].
We're in closed beta.
Told is being tested with a small first group of families. Leave your email and we'll tell you the moment public sign-up opens.
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