Chatbot Brings AI Digital Humans To Life

A company that creates lifelike “digital humans” is now incorporating chatbot technology so they can converse.

Israeli startup D-ID specializes in hyper-real AI avatars that have been replacing actors in training videos.

It has now launched an API (application programming interface) to expand their capabilities, so they can conduct natural face-to-face conversations.

That will provide an engaging and effective way for companies to improve customer support and experience, as well as training, all while lowering overall production costs. 

Text chatbots are the top way consumers interact with brands, but 50 percent of users feel frustrated with their experience, according to a recent survey by Forrester, a research and advisory company.

On the other hand, 61 percent of consumers who had a positive experience with a chatbot said they were more likely to use it again. 

Avatars are also an attractive and affordable alternative to live actors in a studio with a camera operator, lights and sound recording, which would all cost $1,000 a minute.

D-ID has a whole cast of “actors”, as well as 270 voices, 119 languages, and a range of accents. There’s even a range of presentation styles – angry, cheerful, sad, excited, hopeful, customer service, newscast.

“Large language models like GPT-3 and LaMDA are changing the way we relate to and interact with technology, and we are not far off from all of us having our own personalized AI assistants and companions,” said Gil Perry, CEO and Co-Founder of D-ID.

“We are making tech more human by giving it a face and making the interaction more natural. I am very proud of D-ID, which continues to be at the cutting edge of the emergent generative AI industry.”

D-ID was founded in 2017 by three veterans of the IDF intelligence corp, and is based in Tel Aviv.