Jotto Founder & CEO, Pleasantville
Writing by Serena Norr
Photography by Justin Negard
Originally from Yorktown Heights and now living in Pleasantville, Jason Van Anden was an early technology adopter; he learned how to code in sixth grade during the late 1970s and later became a self-taught software engineer. He’s worked in art and technology, including creating a pair of interactive human-scale emotive robotic sculptures in the late 1990s during the maker movement. This transitioned to starting Quadrant 2, where his team created three groundbreaking social justice apps. His latest venture, Jotto, launched in March of 2024 with help from the Element46 Accelerator program.
Please give us a brief overview of your background.
I gravitated towards computers in 1977 when the TRS-80 computer came out. I learned how to code and was exposed to computers when many of my friends’ dads worked at the Blue Sky Campus. I ended up pursuing art and received a BFA in sculpture at Syracuse University, and I developed emotive robotic sculptures while also starting a software company called Quadrant 2.
What is Quadrant 2?
Quadrant 2 is a software development company that’s known for creating three public interest technologies. In 2011, we created the social justice app “I’m Getting Arrested” that went globally viral during Occupy Wall Street. It was considered the first panic button app that allowed users to notify other users (friends, family, legal representatives) if they were arrested. In late 2011, the New York Civil Liberties Union asked if we could create something like that for the stop-and-frisk practice. So we created “Stop and Frisk Watch,” which used video to document interactions with the police. It evolved over time and became “Mobile Justice,” which is available nationwide.Then, in 2016, we created the “Work It” app, for OurWalmart using IBM’s Watson AI technology. It was created as a safe space for Walmart employees to ask questions that might be awkward to present to their managers. All three apps received a lot of press coverage because they were new and innovative tech.
How did the idea for Jotto come about?
It came out of the bystander video technologies we created for other apps that could be voice-activated to record video remotely and live stream it to people whose SMS or email addresses they had preloaded.We knew it could have other uses, so we created a different version and combined it with another app we wanted to call Prompt. In the process, the “prompts” became questions that people could respond to as video, voice or text. After several beta tests of the new technology, it became apparent that the AI analysis we had implemented in WorkIt could be used to make sense of large sets of data, so we added that into the Jotto platform.
How does Jotto work?
Jotto is sort of like the greatest hits album of all our innovative apps. We combined alerts, video feedback and AI, inviting feedback from the public we often don’t hear from. Feedback is usually garnered from live interviews/focus groups, town halls or scraping social media. The problem is we usually hear from angry people or people with a lot of time on their hands. We’re not listening to all the voices that have great things to share. With Jotto, you scan a QR code or click a link with an open-ended question and respond via video, voice or text. We then use AI to create sophisticated and instant reports that distill information so an organization can better understand the public and/or consumers.
When did Jotto officially start?
We participated in Westchester County’s Element46 Accelerator last summer. At that point, Jotto wasn’t its own company; it was an internal project of Quadrant 2. The company was officially established in March 2024, and we received support from various organizations through Westchester County and New York State, including The Business Council of Westchester, Element46 Accelerator, the Hudson Valley Venture Hub, Upstate Capital, the New York State SBIR and Cornell Tech.
What organizations currently use Jotto?
It’s currently being used by conferences to understand and improve the attendees’ experience, local governments as a 24/7 open door for residents to share their ideas and experience with leaders, and campaigns that invite feedback from donors no matter what level they can contribute.
What does success look like for Jotto?
In the short term, it’s important that we are a sustainable business. For the longer term, success is giving a voice to people who normally aren’t heard, as well as reaching the organizations and businesses that value a new way to receive feedback.
What is the most significant challenge you are facing?
Since this is a new technology, we need early adaptors so other people can understand its value. We also need to reach and educate companies and businesses about Jotto to explain the importance of hearing from the public.
What personal qualities do you think are essential for a successful entrepreneur?
You have to be persistent and be able to maneuver. I actually think Indiana Jones embodies the spirit of the entrepreneur; obsessed with a vision, able to maneuver in a pinch, and willing to take risks.
What’s your dream?
That every voice matters.
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This article was published in the September/October 2024 edition of Connect to Northern Westchester.

Serena Norr
Serena Norr is a freelance writer, playwright, and founder of Let’s Make a Play, a playwriting program for kids and adults. Her plays have been performed at the Omaha Fringe Festival, White Plains Performing Arts Center, the New Deal Creative Arts Center, Westchester Collaborative Theater, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, The Players Theater with the Rogue Theater Festival and the NYC Short Play Festival, The Tank, The Flea, the University of Alabama as well as various productions over Zoom. She is also a teaching artist with the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival and Caramoor Center for the Arts. For more information, visit http://www.serenanorr.com/