Dachi is an app that lets you talk with anime characters that respond with realistic thoughts, emotions, and body language. Read on to discover our mission. Test prototype bots on our Discord: https://discord.gg/ddPb8BpMjW

Dear Fellow Cultured Individuals,

For those of us who have grown up with anime, it holds a special place in our hearts. Whether it was Spike’s jazz-inspired road to redemption or experiencing Goku’s iconic Kamehameha, anime has been a portal to fantastical worlds, unforgettable characters, and life-changing lessons.

At Pixar, there’s a saying: “The art challenges the technology, and the technology inspires the art.” Just like its Western counterpart, the art of anime has always challenged technology to bring us closer to the characters that we love.

• 1950 — Anime started with hand-drawn animation cels
• 1990 — Efficiencies with digital illustration and software compositing
• Today — The introduction of hybrid 2d and 3d techniques

You’re a weeb. I am weeb. So let’s just be real with each other for a moment. It’d be would be sick to have the ability to talk to our favorite waifu, husbando, or anything in between. Having real conversations with anime characters has always been considered one of the holy grails of this hobby.

Just like anime production, expressions of this idea have always used the technology and techniques of their time.

• 2016 — Gatebox: holographic imaging to bring characters into real life
• 2018 — Akihiko Kondo: a marriage with Hatsune Miku with multiple ways to communicate
• 2019 — Talk to Megumin: the loved Konasuba character brought to mobile devices through Live2d
• 2021 — Vtubing: the popularization of people watching entertainers with anime avatars

Today there have been incredible breakthroughs in generative conversations (AI), spearheaded by OpenAI’s GPT, and with major players like Google and LAION joining the scene, the boundaries are sure to be pushed even further.

We’re picking up the baton from our otaku predecessors and making major contributions ourselves by utilizing the latest advancements in AI.

Dachi will let fans talk with anime characters that use realistic thoughts, emotions, and body language.

Dachi is more than just a chat app. It represents one of the biggest dreams in otaku culture: making it real.

The app is still under development but you can check out a very early prototype along with several other previews by following our socials.

So who are we? Not only are we weebs but we bring the needed professional backgrounds to make what the fans want.

Wahyu (Twitter / Linkedin ), ex-staff engineer at Facebook with a background in AI and data processing, is responsible for making our characters come to life.

Michael (Twitter / Linkedin), experience with building high-growth startups from scratch, is responsible for making sure Dachi connects with anime fans worldwide.

“For weebs, by weebs” was one of our first principles and because of that, we decided to adopt the “building in public” stance. This means that across our blog and personal social media handles, we’ll be documenting, sharing, and occasionally griping about our journey building Dachi.

To be honest this was a hard decision to make. In the age of social media where perfection is the standard, we’re facing mistakes from every possible angle. Technologically, we’re dealing with a very new technology that changes every day. Societally, some outsiders gawk and tell us we’re a cringe-pipe dream. Personally, startups often mean putting a pause on everything else in life.

We may face mistakes and challenges, but we believe in what we’re doing. Anime is a worldwide hobby and we know there are others out there who share our passion. Join us on this journey as we chase down the holy grail of real conversations with anime characters.

If you made it this far, we thank you for your time as there are so many other places to spend it. The full Dachi experience is still being developed but there are several things you can do in the meantime.

Start testing: A prototype bot for the character Rin Tohasaka (Fate/Stay). You can tweet + DM her and she will respond. It won’t be an instant response as there are periods where we take the bot offline. Tweet here.

Join our Discord: You can chat directly with us and contribute your own thoughts if you’d like. Join here.

Sign up for our email list: You’ll receive an update when further beta tests and the full app is available. Sign up here.

Thanks!
Wahyu & Michael