I really like two things about it.
One... It completely does away entirely with the "I'd vote for them but they can't possibly win" argument, because if your vote matters it'll eventually go to the candidate who can win that you like better than the alternative.
The other thing I like is that it incentivizes playing to the general rather than the fringe of your base. It sorta ensures candidates are keeping in mind the middle throughout.
I can see how "playing to the middle" is the good connotation phrase that's in practice pretty close to "populism".
I just feel like in the current system, relatively few vote at all, less vote in primaries, and a small subset has outsized influence on the process (which includes certain stripes of interested populists).
I like the concept of RCV personally, and think it helps move us more towards something like greater societal consensus and compromise and father away from tribalistic impulses.
I'm sure it comes with some negative effects as well, but that's the hope anyway.