Meta says US users can now video chat with their Muse AI avatar

Meta has opened Muse Voice, which lets people call and video chat with its consumer AI agent Muse, to everyone in the United States, TechCrunch reports. The company announced the rollout on Thursday. The feature debuted at Meta's Connect developer conference in September and relies on new models called Muse Realtime Avatar and Muse Realtime Voice.

What sets it apart from rival voice assistants, according to TechCrunch, is an animated avatar nicknamed Jolly that users can restyle to resemble a person, an animal or another character. Meta believes giving the agent a face could help people feel more connected to it, and says the avatar will use "subtle expressions and gestures" suited to the tone of a conversation. Muse cannot actually see the user; it listens and responds to what is said.

Chief AI officer Alexandr Wang announced the launch in a blog post and on X, sharing a demo in which his avatar, a fluffy white dog, jokingly suggested he add disclaimers to memes that might be read as Meta endorsing something risqué.

Real-time conversations work on mobile, web and Mac, with support planned for Meta's AI Glasses and an upcoming hardware device called Muse Charm. That product, which TechCrunch describes as a Tamagotchi-like wearable due before year-end, will show the avatar on a small screen and let users talk to the agent or have it carry out tasks. The expansion signals Meta's push to make its assistant a more personal presence across devices.