Hypernatural has just left the stealth mode, caught $ 9.5 million in seed funding YouYour favorite youtuber, or a spokesperson who never sleeps. Not your average pitch, huh?
As Business Insider reportedThe startup based in Los Angeles is led by serious veterans of the industry – the CTO Snapchat Bobby Murphy and the former boss of the Original of YouTube Dustin Sandoval. So yes, they know one thing or two on video, virality and content taking. Their new, hypernatural baby wants to put full -fledged human IA characters in brands, influencers and marketing specialists. The big idea? You will no longer need a camera team or even a human presenter. Just type your script and boom – your Avatar AI is ready for prime time.
Let us not pretend that it is not massive. They use proprietary generative video models to transform simple text into realistic videos with people who flash, emotional, gesture – you name it. The objective is to give creators “a faceless face” content, especially for use in product lands, online courses and short announcements. Extremely effective? Absolutely. But also, a little frightening. It strikes different when the synthetic version of “you” is better lit and never needs a coffee break.
The hypernatural team claims that their characters are “hyperreal” – which means more expressive, natural and emotionally reactive than your standard robotic avatars. Think less model, more hope for the Oscars. And they bet big that these AI actors are what the brands are hungry. Judging by the seed financing tour, led by high -level investors like First Round Capital and including the former CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, it seems that money agrees.
But here is the thing that nobody means out loud: let's get lost real Human creators in the process? I mean, we have been talking about IA flight jobs for years, but that has the impression of opening the door to a reality where even actors and influencers can be replaced by their digital doppelgängers. According to MIT Technology Review, there are already growing concerns in the entertainment industry in the place where ethical lines should be traced.
And then there is the Deepfake elephant in the room. Hypernatural says that his avatars are designed with ethical constraints and transparency in mind, but let's be honest – we have seen how good intentions can be transformed in chaos. Remember when Sora dropped for the first time and internet panicked on her deep potential? It looks like that, but with better lighting and tighter labial synchronization.
However, everything should not be misfortune and sadness. For small creators who do not have Hollywood budgets or polished camera skills, this could change the situation. Imagine an indie fitness coach launching a full course using an AI AI which actually reflects his tone and expressions. Or a shy entrepreneur building an entire brand without ever entering a goal. It is empowerment, if it is well used.
Even Tiktok feels the pressure. As Bloomberg has reported, the platform is already experimenting with similar technology to generate AI influencers that push 24/7 brands without the need to sleep, eat or be paid. It is realized here.
Hypernatural is not the only one in this race either. They compete with players such as synthesis and time one, but they bet that their side is emotion – to make avatars ai which does not talk but feel. This is a major challenge, but if someone will remove it, it is probably a team that has been behind some of the largest internet video platforms in the last decade.
Another thing – while everyone is excited by technology, not enough people talk about how it could completely reshape trust. The more realistic these avatars become, the more viewers will start asking: Who is real and who is synthetic? And in a world already shortening on the overload of disinformation, it is a big problem.
As the Atlantic pointed out, synthetic influencers already dispute what authenticity even means online. With a hypernatural jump into the arena, we officially enter the strange valley with a suitcase and an apartment lease.