A16Z: AI Avatars

What happens when AI doesn’t just generate content, but embodies it? AI has already mastered the ability to produce realistic photos, videos, and voices, passing the visual and auditory Turing Test. The next big leap is in AI avatars: combining a face with a voice to create a talking character. Can’t you just generate an image of a face, animate it, and add a voiceover? Not quite. The challenge isn’t just nailing the lip sync — it’s making facial expressions and body language move in tandem. It would be weird if your mouth opened in surprise, but your cheeks and chin didn’t budge! And if a voice sounds excited but the corresponding face doesn’t react, the human-like illusion falls apart. We’re starting to see real progress here. AI avatars are already being used in content creation, advertising, and corporate communication. Today’s versions are still mostly talking heads — functional, but limited — but we’ve seen some exciting developments in the last few months, and there’s clearly ... Read full article.