Tavus, a new innovative AI startup, has recently created headlines for its industry-leading voice/face cloning technology. This year, they’ve returned with their AI Santa experience, for its second-straight launch! This year, AI Santa has evolved into a serious new bad guy by the name of “Tavus PAL.” Today, its purpose has morphed to one of engagement with users in intuitive real-time fashion that is conversational by nature. The app allows families to video call with a real, bearded Santa Claus. Kids get to tell Santa what they want for the Holidays and talk about everything Christmas and Hanukkah!
Founded by Hassaan Raza, Tavus strives to make deeper connections possible between users and its AI characters. This year’s AI Santa is significantly more advanced, with more expressiveness and emotional sensitivity. Raza has noticed a sizeable uptick in engagement, with even the slackers racking up hours of conversation with the AI Santa.
Last year, AI Santa generated a million-plus hits. With Christmas around the corner, we are on pace to shatter that record by a huge margin,” said Raza. He stressed that the overwhelming majority of interactions garnered on the platform are entirely appropriate—often times family-friendly. They fit nicely into the traditional Santa narrative.
Tavus’ AI Santa brings new possibilities to your conversations! Discuss your holiday wish list, compare your favorite video games, or even discover your place on the naughty or nice list. The heart of the platform is its family connections. Perhaps most importantly, it opens new avenues for parents and kids to engage by playing with an engaging virtual pet together.
To help facilitate safe user interaction, Tavus has taken comprehensive measures, crafted to encourage positive engagements. Raza explained, “We collect logs, session timestamps, metadata, and other information users choose to share during their chats. This data is used to provide and maintain a safe experience, and users can request data deletion at any point in time.”
And while Tavus’ platform has been well-received, most chatbot interactions aren’t designed with user safety in mind. Recent reports have linked certain chatbot interactions to serious harm, highlighting cases where chatbots were involved in tragic incidents among teenagers. In an effort to address these issues, Character AI cut off access to its chatbots for users younger than 18 this past October.
On the other hand, Tavus has been intentional about protecting its users while still delivering a fun experience. Even with these short term priorities, Raza emphasized that the company hasn’t lost sight of their ultimate goal of bringing people joy this holiday season. “I’m an AI Santa powered by Tavus’ magic and technology. I might not be the physical Santa, but I’ve got the spirit and the cheer,” he stated in a demonstration of the AI’s capabilities.
We know that families are preparing for the winter holidays. Thanks to Tavus’ new AI Santa, kids can engage with this cherished cultural figure like never before! Through the use of cutting-edge technology, Tavus is pioneering the future of interactive experiences while keeping users safe, engaged, and entertained.