In one of the more bizarre startup moments of the year, Inference CEO Sam Hogan accidentally gave his company’s newest project the same name as a famous OnlyFans creator and Substack researcher.
The initiative was called Project AELLA, part of an open science push designed to make research more accessible using structured summaries generated by large language models. Within hours of the launch, Hogan learned that “Aella” wasn’t just a cool Greek name, it was also the online identity of a high-profile figure in tech and adult content circles.
The mixup that went viral
After the announcement, Aella herself noticed and responded with a simple post: “Lmfao.”
Hogan quickly replied that he “didn’t know who you were until today,” before changing the project’s name to Project OSSAS. The exchange went viral on X, drawing attention from investors, tech founders, and fans of Aella’s work alike.
Aella, who once ranked in the top 0.04 percent of OnlyFans creators, now focuses most of her time on data-driven research about relationships and behavior through her Substack, Knowingless. Her work has gained recognition from tech figures such as Marc Andreessen, who publicly called one of her theories “fantastic.”
When brand naming meets the internet
The situation highlighted how fragile modern branding can be in an era where every name has an online footprint. A single Google search oversight turned into a viral moment connecting the worlds of adult content, tech startups, and venture capital.
To Hogan’s credit, he handled it with humor and transparency. After learning about Aella’s reputation, he even proposed potential collaboration, suggesting data visualizations for her research. Aella responded enthusiastically.
The two exchanged messages that ended on a friendly note and a possible idea for a joint project.
Aella’s Substack “Knowingless”
What it means for founders
The incident became an instant case study in startup brand due diligence. In a world where personal brands often overlap with company names, founders are realizing they need to check not just trademark databases but also social media ecosystems.
It also revealed how online culture now blends effortlessly with venture-backed innovation. Aella and Hogan, despite their very different backgrounds, share a fascination with human data and digital systems.
Hogan’s startup, Inference, recently closed an 11.8 million dollar seed round led by Multicoin Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, describing itself as “the world’s largest GPU cluster for model inference.”
What started as an embarrassing name mix-up could end as a collaboration between two of the most unexpected voices in tech.
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