Roulette Russian: The teenager behind Chatroulette

He reminds me of moot, the founder of 4chan, only he seems to be more technically adept. The key story is the same, though: "I created this side-project on a whim when I was young; now it's taking over the internet and I have no idea how to properly monetize or grow it. It's reached critical mass, but it has also grown beyond my ability to analyze and change its direction in meaningful ways. Also, it's full of dicks."

"Like much of his generation, Ternovskiy has an online persona far more developed than his real one."

Has anyone else noticed that the article is dated 17 May 2010?

Just accessed today, 10th May 2010 at 10.55pm CEST

Chatroulette fits the YC model perfectly. Cheap to run, started by a young guy, builds an audience without marketing. Perhaps YC should build a Moscow office.

And the monetization will come. Twitter is valued 1B+, without making any revenues, I believe. Building the audience first is more important.

Has anyone else noticed that the girl's left hand becomes her right hand in the article's main graphic?

He deserves an honorary doctorate for Chatroulette.

The idea has so many applications such as web site user testing, advertising, video games, education, etc.