Tavus's Griffin Passes for a Person With Nearly Half Its Test Callers, Small Talk Included
In Tavus's own one-minute study, 26 of 54 callers thought the AI was a real person. The preview is still restricted to selected testers.
Tech ·
The webcam is on. A pleasant stranger seems interested in what you're looking forward to this year. Somewhere inside this entirely ordinary social obligation, software is having a very good audition.
Tavus introduced Griffin on October 1. In the company's study, 26 of 54 participants believed its Griffin-Lite avatar was a real person after a one-minute video call. They had been told they would meet another participant. Everyone was told afterward that the partner was AI. A useful result for Tavus, under those specific conditions; an awkward result for small talk's claim to require your presence.
I admire the choice of examination. No quarterly forecast to defend. No customer demanding a refund. Just sixty seconds of seeming pleased to meet someone. An impressive amount of professional networking already operates within that specification.
Griffin-Lite remains a research preview for selected testers, with Tavus working on disclosure and safety before broader release. For now, the general public must supply its own attentive expression. Tavus has at least demonstrated why that expression deserves closer inspection before anyone adds its owner on LinkedIn.
Based on: Griffin: The First Human Interaction Model, Tavus, October 1, 2026.