What is Synthesia?
Synthesia is the enterprise standard for AI avatar videos. Their Express-2 engine, released September 2025, creates full-body avatars with professional gestures that look like actual speakers. It's used by Fortune 500 companies for training, onboarding, and internal communications.
Express-2 combines state-of-the-art voice cloning with a diffusion transformer (DiT) model designed specifically for natural avatar movement and expressions.
Key Features
- Express-2 Engine: Full-body avatars with natural gestures
- 230+ Avatars: Diverse stock presenters for any use case
- 140+ Languages: Create content for global audiences
- Voice Cloning: Clone your voice for consistent branding
- Custom Avatars: Create an avatar from your likeness
- Templates: Professional templates for common use cases
Version History
- Express-2 (Sep 2025): Full-body avatars, voice cloning, DiT model
- Express-1 (Nov 2024): Expressive AI avatars
- Studio 2.0 (Apr 2024): Custom avatar creation
Pricing
- Free: 10 minutes/month (9 stock avatars)
- Starter: $29/month — 10 minutes
- Creator: $89/month — 30 minutes
- Enterprise: Custom pricing — unlimited
Pros & Cons
✓ Pros
- Best avatar quality in the industry
- Full-body natural gestures
- Enterprise-grade security
- 140+ languages with native accents
- Custom avatar creation
✗ Cons
- Higher price than competitors
- Minutes-based pricing can be limiting
- Best features require Enterprise plan
Verdict
Synthesia is the clear leader for business AI avatar videos. Express-2 represents a significant leap in realism — avatars now gesture like professional speakers rather than stiff talking heads. For enterprise training, marketing, and communications, Synthesia remains the gold standard.