Wyoming Siblings And Their Daylight Computer Get Huge Boost From Joe Rogan

UPPER GREEN RIVER — Here at the start of elk season, an evangelist for a new way of computing is pushing the limits of what it means to work remotely in Wyoming. 

Tristan Scott is camped in one of the most remote reaches of the Upper Green River drainage about an hour's drive over challenging jeep roads north of Cora.

Scott serves as head of operations, marketing and hardware for Daylight Computer Co. Armed with Starlink and a 200-watt solar array, he’s leading a movement against computers and devices that are constantly asking for more and more of their users' attention. 

A promotional video for the company insists that, “Daylight doesn't scream for your attention. It’s quiet, calm, patient. It’s there when you need it but it doesn't beg to be used. It’s a tool not a master.”

Call it connected unplugging.

"We align very much with the environment, the lifestyle here in Wyoming in terms of getting out in nature, a lot of wilderness, and really just a deliberate way to live," Scott told Cowboy State Daily from his elk camp office, where he was balancing company responsibilities with scouting for big bulls. 

Tristan and his sister Julia, a second-grade teacher in Cody, have emerged as two of the primary messengers for a technology they believe could fundamentally change our relationship with screens.

The Daylight DC-1 tablet represents what the company calls "the computer, de-invented" — a device that promises all the functionality of an iPad or laptop with none of the negative health impacts. 

The innovation centers on a proprietary e-paper display technology that founder Anjan Katta spent six years developing.

Katta, who struggled with ADHD and seasonal affective disorder, “Went down a research rabbit hole with display technology," Tristan explained. "He tried all the e-readers, the Kindles of the world. 

"But the problem with those devices is they're very slow and they can't be used for more than reading and note-taking."

The result is what Tristan describes as "the fastest e-paper display technology in the world" — essentially "a Kindle on steroids" or "a healthier iPad."

The Joe Rogan Effect

This summer, Daylight Computer gained significant exposure when podcaster Danny Jones demonstrated the device on the wildly popular “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast.

Jones, who specializes in health and technology topics, showed Rogan the tablet's paper-like display and explained how it helps him fall asleep faster at night due to the absence of blue light.

The appearance introduced the concept to millions of Rogan's fans and may have helped validate the market for healthier technology alternatives.

It also impressed Rogan.

"This looks good,” he said. “Like, when you're looking at it, it doesn't f*** with your eyes at all. It looks like a piece of paper.”

Jones also praised the Daylight Computer for its speed in note-taking and zooming in and out of pages and images, which is instant.

New Jersey To Wyoming

The Scott siblings grew up in New Jersey with an Austrian mother who instilled in them a love for the outdoors.

Julia moved to Wyoming first, attending the University of Wyoming and staying after graduation. During COVID while working remotely, Tristan decided to buy a house in Thermopolis to use as his home base.

"Just realized quickly after spending more time in Wyoming that there's a lot of personal alignment," he said. "Really just aligned with the access to wilderness, nature and sovereignty."

Now Tristan plans to relocate to Lander, where he hopes Daylight Computer will eventually open a satellite office. The company is now 50%  remote, 50% based in San Francisco, with about 25 employees total.

"I think our company ethos is much more in line with Wyoming," Tristan said. "One of the main benefits of the device is it has a reflective display, so you can see it outside in the sun, and a really long battery life."

The Daylight DC-1 claims to tackle several specific problems with conventional screens. The device features a reflective display that requires no backlight in ambient light conditions, making it readable on a bright autumn afternoon. 

When a backlight is needed in low-light conditions, the device uses custom-made LEDs that are 100 percent blue-light-free and emit an amber tone.

According to Daylight Computer and research supporting its technology, blue light from conventional screens is overstimulating to the brain and nervous system, contributing to addiction and making it harder to put devices down. 

Blue light also disrupts melatonin production at night, interfering with sleep quality and circadian rhythms.

Importantly, said Tristan, the Daylight DC-1 doesn’t flicker.

“Your screen, your phone, your laptop — it's actually flickering on and off just at a rate our eyes can't see,” he said. "But that's very stressful to our bodies, our brain and our nervous system."

The DC-1 runs a custom version of Android with access to the Google Play Store, but with modifications designed to minimize distraction. 

The company is developing what it calls "Sol OS" — software designed for productivity with no pinging notifications and the ability to shut off social media entirely.

A Teacher's Perspective

Julia sees the problem with conventional screens from the front lines inside her classroom in Cody. 

After more than a decade working in Wyoming schools, she's witnessing dramatic shifts in student behavior that she directly links to screen exposure.

"There's 100% a clear shift in student tolerance for gratification," she said. "These elementary kids — it has to be now, it has to be instant. If it's not instant gratification, the frustrations are much more evident."

Working at Eastside Elementary, Julia observes students who are "almost zombified" by excessive screen time at home.

"Those kids that are video gamers and on technology for entertainment purposes, they come to school and you can see they're the kids that need that immediate feedback,” she said. "They’re constantly asking, 'Hey, is this good enough? I need your attention now, I need your attention now.’"

Daylight Computer is coming along at a time when Wyoming schools are pushing technology at increasingly young ages, said Julia. 

Park County School District 6 has made career and college readiness a core mission, with kindergartners now learning basic coding concepts. 

“There are coding standards for kindergartners right now,” she said. 

Julia, who has a three-year-old son and another child on the way, has been conducting her own experiments. When she let her toddler look at Halloween costumes on her phone via Amazon, "He would not give it back. He got fussy. He was very temperamental about it."

With the Daylight device?

"He gets on, he does whatever little writing app I give him to do, and he's like, ‘OK, I'm good.' He has no problem just handing it over,” said Julia. 

Daylight Kids Initiative

The company recently launched Daylight Kids, a version of the product with parental controls and curated apps specifically designed for young users. 

"One of the biggest goals we have is centered around Daylight Kids," Tristan said. "The whole premise is kids are growing up on screens, and we think that's a problem because it's basically replacing childhood."

Julia is spearheading efforts to implement pilot programs in the Cody school system and potentially other Wyoming districts. 

"Why wouldn't we want our future generations and our kids to have a healthier option?" she said. "Park 6 already has this mission of career and college readiness. Why wouldn't we start implementing something that is healthier for our kids and is getting the job done that they need to do?"

Why Wyoming?

Tristan believes Wyoming provides the ideal base for introducing Daylight Computer to the world not despite its remoteness, but because of it.

"We're big on sovereignty at an individual level and also at a company level," he said. "At a cognitive level, we no longer really have control and authority over where we're spending our time and attention, because we're so dictated by the devices and the content that we're consuming on the internet all day long. We're trying to restore that."

For Tristan, Wyoming represents that restoration — a place where wilderness access, individual freedom, and deliberate outdoor living align with the company's core values. 

It's why he can conduct business from an elk camp and why he believes a future Lander office makes sense.

Cowboy State Daily tried to meet Tristan at his remote office outpost in the Madison family Subaru, which sports a “stoke meter” bumper sticker. 

Overall stoke for the journey plunged after the first creek crossing when the Outback nearly high-centered. 

It then meekly retreated back to town. 

Over Starlink, reflecting on his background in electrical engineering and promoting healthy habits, Tristan said Daylight Computer is trying to meet a demand from customers who are missing the tech piece of their lifestyle puzzle. 

“We could all eat really super healthy, spend as much time outside as we want, get a good light environment and great sleep,” he said. “But if you're staring at your phone and computer all day long, there's something that's still affecting our health negatively."

With elk bugling in the distance and the willows swaying in the October breeze, Tristan made a pitch about Daylight Computer’s future: “We're not stopping at a tablet. We have aspirations for doing a whole lot more. 

"We like to tell people that our goal is to literally become this generation's Apple and do so in a way that is healthier and much more synergistic with humanity."

David Madison can be reached at david@cowboystatedaily.com.