For most individuals, a human face is the very first “user interface” we experience in life. As online technologies advance, we see newer and newer iterations of User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) tools and methods, all in pursuit of simple, intuitive usage of online applications. We believe that our animated characters not only provide one of the most intuitive UIs available but that their capacity to listen and convey empathy makes for experiences that are not only easier – they’re truly more supportive.
Realistic without being too realistic.
While we put great care into making our animations relatable and empathetic, we’re careful to not make them so realistic they are off-putting. Do you know when you’re watching a computer-generated character that looks so close to a human that it’s creepy? You’re not alone. The “Uncanny Valley” is a phenomenon where humans perceive non-human characters that too closely resemble people as, well, creepy. So our animators take care to create characters whose features are just exaggerated and stylized enough that users forget that they’re talking to a computer, but they don’t feel too uneasy to even get started.