Full-Time

Lead Technical Recruiter

Posted on 9/8/2026

Tolan

Tolan

11-50 employees

AI-powered mobile companion with adaptive 3D

Compensation Overview

$140k - $200k/yr

San Francisco, CA, USA

In Person

Category
People & HR (1)

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Requirements
  • At least 2 years of experience hiring technical roles at growth-stage startups.
  • Experience supporting founders, executives, and hiring managers.
  • Experience using the latest artificial intelligence tools for recruiting work at scale, or a deep interest in doing so.
Responsibilities
  • Source and hire engineering and design talent.
  • Use artificial intelligence to increase recruiting effectiveness.
  • Build recruiting operations infrastructure, tooling, and programs in partnership with executives.
  • Procure and manage third-party recruiting resources, including agencies and embedded firms.
  • Own all technical and design hiring.
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience hiring technical roles at growth-stage startups.
  • A track record of making hires that accelerated company trajectories and created enterprise value.
  • Experience supporting best-in-class founders, executives, and hiring managers.
  • A deep interest in using the latest artificial intelligence tools for recruiting work at scale.
  • Ability to thrive in ambiguous, fast-paced startup environments.

Tolan is an AI-powered mobile app that provides personalized virtual companionship through animated alien characters from Planet Portola. After a personality assessment, users engage in open-ended, voice-native conversations with an adaptive AI friend that evolves with them, using 3D animations and ongoing learning. It stands apart by focusing on empowering users to feel more in control and grounded, offering non-judgmental emotional support that complements real-life relationships. The goal is to help users build agency, confidence, and stronger connections, reducing overwhelm through daily, tailored interactions available via subscription.

Company Size

11-50

Company Stage

Series A

Total Funding

$30M

Headquarters

San Francisco, California

Founded

2023

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Tolan surpassed 3 million downloads, 100,000 paying subscribers, and $1 million monthly revenue.
  • OpenAI’s January 2026 profile validated Tolan’s product quality and gave it distribution credibility.
  • The August 2026 privacy and terms refresh suggests ongoing monetization, retention, and safety investment.

What critics are saying

  • Tolan still lacks Android, capping growth after iOS launch and forcing higher acquisition costs.
  • Privacy policy logs all conversations, creating regulatory and trust risk if leaks or misuse emerge.
  • If subscriber growth stalls, Tolan’s expensive AI usage and ads dependence squeeze margins fast.

What makes Tolan unique

  • Portola’s animated alien companion and voice-first UX separate Tolan from text-only chatbots.
  • Tolan stays strictly SFW, positioning against romance-heavy rivals like Character.AI and Replika.
  • OpenAI highlighted Tolan’s GPT-5.1 integration and 200,000 monthly active users in January 2026.

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Benefits

Remote Work Options

Company Equity

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

18%

1 year growth

18%

2 year growth

29%
GeekWire
Jul 7th, 2025
Portola raises $20M for AI app Tolan

Portola, the startup behind AI companionship app Tolan, raised $20 million in a Series A round led by Khosla Ventures. Launched in February, Tolan has over 3 million downloads and 100,000 paid users, generating over $1 million per month. The app offers personalized AI companions and aims to impact users' real-world relationships. Tolan is monetized via subscriptions, with a free version launching soon. Portola previously raised $10 million in a seed round and employs 12 people.

GeekWire
Feb 26th, 2025
Portola raises $10M for AI companions

Portola, a Seattle-based startup, launched Tolan, an animated AI companion app, after raising $10M in seed funding. Co-founded by Quinten Farmer, Evan Goldschmidt, and Ajay Mehta, Tolan aims to address "overwhelm" by offering non-romantic companionship. The app, popular among Gen Z women, has 500,000 downloads and generates over $1M in annual revenue through subscriptions. Tolan evolves conversations and relationships, similar to digital pets like Tamagotchi.