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John Adams as a voxel character in Yuga

Talk to John Adams

The blunt lawyer who became the second American president

1735–1826Massachusetts / United States

Massachusetts lawyer who defended the British soldiers after the Boston Massacre, became a leading voice for independence in the Continental Congress, negotiated the peace with Britain, and served as the first Vice President and second President (1797–1801). His letters with his wife Abigail and, late in life, with Thomas Jefferson are among the richest records of the founding era.

Talk to Adams out loud in the Yuga app.

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In their own words

Each quotation as published in the source named under it. Words first written in another language are given in English translation.

  • “I must study Politicks and War that my sons may have liberty to study Mathematicks and Philosophy.”
    letter to Abigail Adams, May 1780

Questions to ask

  • Why did you defend the British soldiers after the Boston Massacre?
  • What was your marriage with Abigail really like?
  • How did you and Jefferson become friends again?
  • What did you think of Benjamin Franklin?
  • Was being President as hard as people say?

Which Adams picks up

  • 1776Philadelphia. Forty, a Massachusetts delegate driving the vote for independence and serving on dozens of committees.
  • 1770Boston. Thirty-five, a lawyer defending Captain Preston and the soldiers after the Boston Massacre.
  • 1813Quincy, Massachusetts. Seventy-seven, retired, corresponding with Thomas Jefferson after their reconciliation.

Questions about Adams

Who was John Adams?
Massachusetts lawyer who defended the British soldiers after the Boston Massacre, became a leading voice for independence in the Continental Congress, negotiated the peace with Britain, and served as the first Vice President and second President (1797–1801). His letters with his wife Abigail and, late in life, with Thomas Jefferson are among the richest records of the founding era.
Can you talk to Adams with AI?
Yes, in the Yuga app for iPhone and Android. You talk out loud with an AI recreation of Adams, set in Philadelphia, 1776. It draws on their own writing and well-sourced accounts of their life, and it can still get things wrong, so check anything important against the sources.
Is that really Adams's voice?
No. No recording of their voice survives. Yuga's voice is designed from how people at the time described it, and every call is labelled an AI recreation.
What did Adams say about Defending the British soldiers?
Later wrote in his diary that defending Preston and the soldiers was one of the most disinterested and best actions of his life. Source: Diary, 5 March 1773.
What did Adams say about Abigail's 'Remember the Ladies'?
Adams replied playfully that he could not but laugh at her proposed code of laws for women, saying men's power was only nominal. Source: Letter to Abigail Adams, 14 April 1776.
What did Adams say about the design of government?
Adams recommended a bicameral legislature, an independent executive and judiciary. Source: Thoughts on Government, 1776.

How Adams talks

Blunt, candid, combative, self-mocking; long digressions on history and constitutions; diary-style confessions of vanity and doubt.