This AI Startup Backed by Mark Cuban is Unveiling Family Secrets—Are You Ready to Discover Yours?

Charlie Greene, the cofounder and CEO of Remento, has a deeply personal connection to the importance of preserving memories. His journey began on September 11, 2001, when his father, Don Greene, tragically lost his life during the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93. At just 10 years old, Greene experienced the profound impact of loss and memory, relying largely on old home videos to remember his father.

Years later, when Greene's mother, Claudette, was diagnosed with stage-three lung cancer at the age of 74, he felt an urgent need to record her memories. In preparing for an oral history interview, he turned to Google for guidance, only to find a haunting autofill suggestion: “Questions to ask a parent before they die.”

As he began asking Claudette questions about her childhood, such as “How did you get to elementary school as a kid?” he was pleasantly surprised by her enthusiasm. “The thing that blew me away about that experience was how unmorbid it felt,” Greene recounts. While Claudette is currently in remission, her battle with cancer left Greene with an “unhealthily fixated” mindset on how to preserve the memories of loved ones.

In October 2023, Greene launched Remento, a service designed to help families document their stories. Each week, Remento sends older “storytellers” a text or email prompt encouraging them to respond to questions chosen by their family members. Examples include, “What was the hardest thing you had to overcome as a child?” After gathering responses over a maximum of one year, an AI-driven system converts the raw transcripts into a cohesive narrative, which culminates in a physical book filled with images and QR codes linking to original recordings.

Greene's innovative approach has not gone unnoticed; he secured a significant $300,000 investment from billionaire Mark Cuban during an episode of Shark Tank, in exchange for a 10% stake in his company. To date, Remento has raised a total of $4.3 million since its launch.

While skepticism surrounding AI is prevalent, Greene feels that Remento’s use of technology has resonated positively with its users. “A lot of what AI is proposing to the world doesn’t feel actually that good to our lives right now,” he acknowledges. A recent study by the nonprofit Jobs For the Future, which surveyed over 3,000 people, found that 38% believe AI does more harm than good, with less than half viewing the technology as a net positive.

Despite these concerns, Greene has encountered less pushback than anticipated. He attributes this to Remento’s mission of providing users with something deeply personal. “Investors want to invest in AI because it’s an exciting place to be. But I think what we’re experiencing is people have problems and they want them solved,” Greene explains.

The trend is echoed by Kindred Tales, a rival platform co-founded by Nick Hern and his wife, Rebecca. Their company offers both AI and non-AI versions of their product. While the non-AI version requires users to manually type responses to weekly prompts, the AI version facilitates the process with speech-to-text transcription and light editing, capable of generating a first draft of the interviewee’s story if desired. After 2025, customer preference for the AI version surged from just over 50% to 80%.

“Customers increasingly see AI as a meaningful part of the storytelling experience, not just an extra,” Hern noted. This shift is reflective of a larger acceptance of AI technologies in personal contexts. Greene, who also utilizes AI to streamline aspects of Remento’s operations, emphasizes that the strength of AI lies in its ability to help families capture invaluable memories. “AI in our company is being used to get people to do things that they’ve always wanted to do but haven’t been able to, and to make that experience as seamless and human-like as possible,” he stated.

As Remento and other similar platforms continue to grow, they’re not just navigating the complexities of technology but also tapping into a universal human need: the desire to remember and share our stories. In a world where memories can often feel fleeting, these services provide a way to hold onto the legacies of loved ones, ensuring that their voices are not forgotten.