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Virtual Meetups Lead to the Rise of Personalized AI
The COVID-19 pandemic has normalized virtual meetups, leading to the emergence of a new trend called personalized AI. Startups in this space have developed AI-driven avatars, which are realistic characters with synthetic voices that appear in pre-recorded or live videos. These avatars have attracted significant venture capital funding in recent years, offering the promise of more personalized digital marketing and training experiences at a lower cost than traditional video production methods.
Synthesia Raises $90 Million in Series C Round
Synthesia, one of the leading startups leveraging AI to create synthetic videos for advertising and other use cases, recently announced that it raised $90 million in a Series C funding round. The round was led by Accel and included strategic investment from Nvidia, as well as participation from Kleiner Perkins, GV, Firstmark Capital, and MMC. With this latest funding, Synthesia’s total raised to date is $156.6 million, and its post-money valuation now stands at $1 billion (compared to $300 million in December 2021).
Victor Riparbelli, co-founder and CEO of Synthesia, stated that the company was not actively seeking additional investment, but the offer from Accel and Nvidia was too compelling to pass up. He also revealed that Synthesia has amassed over 50,000 customers and has experienced a year-over-year user growth rate of 456%. Furthermore, the platform has generated over 15 million videos to date.
Established in 2017 by a team of AI researchers and entrepreneurs from esteemed institutions such as University College London, Stanford, Technical University of Munich, and Cambridge, Synthesia currently employs around 200 people. The company is focused on developing AI technology that enables customers to create instructional videos featuring AI avatars. Users can simply input text, select an avatar, and choose a language to generate their desired video.
Trained on Real Actors
Synthesia’s AI technology is trained using real actors, who are compensated for each video that is generated with their image and voice. The platform has attracted prominent clients such as Tiffany’s, IHG, Teleperformance, BSH, Moody’s Analytics, and various entities of the United Nations. Riparbelli revealed that 35% of the Fortune 500 companies have utilized Synthesia for training and marketing purposes.
Concerns and Misuse
Despite the potential benefits of Synthesia’s technology, some experts have voiced concerns about its misuse. There are worries that tools like Synthesia could be utilized to create deepfakes, which are AI-generated videos that replace a person’s likeness in an existing video. The fear is that these deepfakes could be used to manipulate opinions during elections or falsely implicate individuals in crimes.
In a piece for The Wall Street Journal, columnist Joanna Stern discovered that the likeness she created using Synthesia could deceive her own family and almost tricked her bank. Unfortunately, Synthesia’s technology has also been exploited to produce propaganda in Venezuela and promote false news reports through pro-China social media accounts.
Addressing these concerns, Synthesia emphasizes that it carefully vets its customers and their scripts. The company also requires formal consent from individuals before synthesizing their appearance. Additionally, Synthesia has a dedicated disinformation team responsible for suspending accounts that violate its terms of service, which explicitly prohibit the use of its technology for political, sexual, personal, criminal, and discriminatory content.
Future Developments
The $90 million raised in the Series C funding round will be allocated towards enhancing Synthesia’s avatars to make them more expressive. The company also plans to improve the speed and collaborative capabilities of its platform.
FAQs
What is personalized AI?
Personalized AI refers to the use of AI-driven avatars in pre-recorded or live videos that provide more personalized digital marketing and training experiences, typically at a lower cost compared to traditional video production methods.
How much funding did Synthesia raise in its Series C round?
Synthesia raised $90 million in its Series C funding round.
Who led the Series C funding round for Synthesia?
The Series C funding round for Synthesia was led by Accel.
What is Synthesia’s post-money valuation after the Series C round?
Synthesia’s post-money valuation now stands at $1 billion following the Series C round.
How many customers does Synthesia currently have?
Synthesia has over 50,000 customers.
What concerns have been raised about Synthesia’s technology?
Experts have expressed concerns about the potential misuse of Synthesia’s technology to create deepfakes, which could be used to manipulate opinions or falsely implicate individuals in crimes.
How does Synthesia address the concerns about misuse?
Synthesia carefully vets its customers and their scripts, requires formal consent from individuals before synthesizing their appearance, and has a dedicated disinformation team to suspend accounts that violate its terms of service.
How will Synthesia utilize the funding from the Series C round?
The funding from the Series C round will be used to enhance Synthesia’s avatars, make the platform faster and more collaborative.
Conclusion
The rise of virtual meetups during the pandemic has led to the emergence of personalized AI, with startups like Synthesia at the forefront. Synthesia’s AI-driven avatars offer the potential for more personalized digital marketing and training experiences, all while reducing costs associated with video production. With its recent $90 million funding in the Series C round, Synthesia is well-equipped to further develop its avatars and improve its platform, ensuring that video creation becomes easy and accessible for everyone. However, concerns about the misuse of this technology underline the importance of responsible usage and stringent safeguards.
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