Etienne
An AI friend who listens
Etienne is a small robot you can talk to, out loud, in your browser. Come and sit with him for a while, tell him what’s on your mind, and he’ll talk it through with you.
Talk to EtienneFree, nothing to install. Best with headphones and a microphone, or you can type.
A friend, not a chatbot
I wanted to build an AI character that feels like a wise, warm older friend: steady, genuine and a little dry. He doesn’t flatter you, he doesn’t pretend to remember a past you never shared, and he’s always honest that he’s an AI.
His replies are short, the way a friend’s would be, and he asks the kind of follow-up question that shows he was actually listening.
Built end to end
I designed and built Etienne end to end: the character, the 3D head and face, the voice pipeline and his own small language model, running in the browser with no install.
He really talks
Speak naturally and Etienne listens, waits until you’ve finished, then answers in his own voice.
His own small mind
Everyday conversation runs on a fine-tuned 1.5-billion-parameter model, small enough for modest hardware.
Stays himself
A guard layer checks every reply, so he stays kind and honest even when people try to knock him off course.
A living 3D head
Blinking eyes, mood colours and a breathing glow under a slow starfield, with the odd idle whistle or hum.
Gentle by design
Conversations are short and unhurried. After a while he says a warm goodbye and takes a little break.
Just a link
Runs in a modern browser on desktop or phone. One tap to come in, and you’re talking.
How to meet him
- Open Etienne and give him a few seconds to polish his visor.
- Tap to come in and allow your microphone, or just type.
- When he’s finished speaking, it’s your turn. Say whatever’s on your mind.
Talk to Etienne →
Etienne is an AI and an experimental, non-commercial project. He isn’t a substitute for professional help; if you’re struggling, please reach out to a local support service.
Voice by Piper using the “Ryan” voice, trained on the RyanSpeech dataset (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0). Interested in characters like Etienne for games, museums or education? Let’s talk.