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An avatar is the visual representation of your AI agent — the face your users see and interact with. LiveAvatar renders a real-time, lip-synced video stream of a human-like character that speaks, reacts, and maintains natural eye contact. Facial expressions, head movement, and overall appearance stay consistent across every interaction, so users always recognize the same character. You can browse and preview all available avatars on the LiveAvatar dashboard.

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Stock avatars

LiveAvatar comes with a library of stock avatars available to all users. They cover a range of appearances, styles, and demographics — perfect for any project or use case.

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Green-screen studio avatars

A subset of the stock library consists of studio avatars built for background replacement: their video renders against a solid green background so you can remove it client-side and place the avatar over your own UI, a branded backdrop, or ambient footage. See Change the avatar background for the chroma-key technique. You can recognize them in the catalog by their preview images — the preview_url on these avatars is a transparent (alpha-channel) cutout of the person rather than a full scene.
There is no dedicated field on the avatar object that marks an avatar as a studio avatar. To detect one programmatically, check whether its preview_url image contains an alpha channel.
Each studio look is available in landscape and portrait, with a separate avatar_id for each orientation: The remaining stock avatars (for example Ann Therapist, Judy Doctor Sitting, Santa Fireplace Front) render a complete scene with a real background and are meant to be shown as-is.

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Custom avatars

If you need a specific visual identity — a branded spokesperson, a recognizable instructor, or a character unique to your product — you can create a custom avatar. There are two ways to create one: from video footage or from a single image. Custom avatar creation is available as a paid subscription add-on and requires an available avatar slot on your plan (see Avatar slots below).

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Video avatars

Video avatars are created from recorded footage. The process requires:
  1. Two minutes of input footage — LiveAvatar trains on this video to learn the subject’s likeness, expressions, and mannerisms.
  2. A consent recording — a short video documenting the subject’s permission to create an avatar using their likeness.
Because the training footage includes speech, LiveAvatar automatically generates a voice clone from the video. This gives your avatar a voice that naturally matches its appearance — no extra setup needed. You can still override this voice with any other available voice at session time.

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Tips for getting a high-quality video avatar

The quality of your input footage directly affects the quality of the resulting avatar. Record a 2-minute video following this structure:
  1. 15 seconds of listening — Smile and nod to the camera. Act as if someone is speaking to you.
  2. 90 seconds of speaking — Talk about anything to the camera. Have a natural conversation, smile, and be yourself.
  3. 15 seconds of idling — Look at the camera, breathe and smile, with no obvious movement.
A few additional guidelines:
  • Record in a well-lit, quiet environment.
  • Pause between each sentence with your mouth closed.
  • Keep your body position stable with minimal movement or gestures.

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Image avatars

Image avatars let you create a custom avatar from a photo instead of video footage. Upload an image of a person and LiveAvatar will generate an avatar based on their likeness. This is a faster, lighter alternative to video avatars — ideal when you don’t have access to recorded footage or need to spin up a custom avatar quickly.

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Key differences from video avatars

Image avatars do not include a voice. You must supply a voice when starting a session — either by selecting one from the voice library, using a custom TTS integration, or bringing your own audio pipeline in LITE Mode. See Voices for available options.

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Tips for getting a high-quality image avatar

  • Use a high-resolution, well-lit photo with the subject facing the camera.
  • Ensure the face is clearly visible and not obscured by accessories or shadows.
  • Use a neutral or plain background for best results.

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Avatar slots

Custom avatars each require an avatar slot. You can purchase slots as add-ons to your subscription plan. When all your slots are in use, you’ll need to either remove an existing custom avatar to free up a slot or purchase additional ones.
Stock avatars do not require avatar slots. Slots only apply to custom avatars (both video and image).