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Tom’s Guide
Tom’s Guide
Technology
Amanda Caswell

I just sent a free personalized holiday greeting from AI Santa — here's how you can too

Santa .

It’s hard to believe we’ve already breezed through the first week in December. If you’re like me and can’t seem to find the time to write and send those greeting cards, why not go a different route this year? This holiday season, Synthesia is giving you a new way to send festive greetings – using AI.

Now users can create personalized messages that include a video from Santa or Mrs. Claus delivered in 140 languages, making it a delightful surprise for friends and family worldwide.

I couldn’t wait to try it myself and surprise my kids. Of course, they loved it and made me try it again and again using the many different templates and versions of Santa. Here’s how it works and how you can try it, too.

How to create your personalized Santa video

Go here to get started. Once you’re in, select a Santa greeting template. The festive options vary, including a cozy living room with a Christmas tree. From there, you can write your Santa message. Not sure what to write? You could always enlist a chatbot for some extra help and paste it in.

Once you have the message you want to send, click submit and wait for Synthesia's AI elves to generate the video. It will be emailed directly to you. From there, you can send your personalized message to your loved ones or send to them directly rather than entering your email address.

The technology behind the magic

(Image credit: Future)

Synthesia's AI video generator utilizes advanced text-to-speech technology to create lifelike avatars of Santa and Mrs. Claus. Synthesia is an AI-powered video generation platform that enables users to create professional-quality videos without the need for cameras or actors. By simply inputting text, users can produce videos featuring realistic AI avatars and voiceovers in over 140 languages.

The platform offers a diverse selection of more than 230 AI avatars, with options for custom avatars to represent specific individuals or brand identities. Synthesia provides a range of features, including pre-designed video templates, an AI video editor, and a multilingual video player that automatically plays content in the viewer's preferred language. These tools make it accessible for users to create engaging content for just about anything from fun to professional.

To maintain the integrity and family-friendly nature of the service, Synthesia reviews each script to filter out political, sexual, offensive, or criminal content. This moderation ensures that all messages align with the holiday spirit and are suitable for recipients of all ages.

The holidays and beyond

While the Santa video feature adds a festive touch, Synthesia's AI video generator offers a range of capabilities year-round. Users can create professional videos without the need for cameras, actors, or studios, making it a versatile tool for various communication needs.

The videos are very realistic but obviously still AI. Still, Synthesia is a great tool and especially valuable for users wanting to simplify training materials, marketing campaigns and other similar types of videos. Its ability to quickly adapt scripts into useable videos not only saves time but also enables consistent communication in the digital age.

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