Synthesia launches Roleplay Sessions for live avatar coaching
The July 2026 release moves Synthesia beyond passive training video into real-time practice, automated coaching, skills scoring, and measurable performance improvement.
By WhatAI Editorial Team ·
Synthesia launched Roleplay Sessions on July 22, 2026 as the first product in its upcoming Sessions platform. Instead of watching a prerecorded training video, a learner has a live conversation with an Interactive Avatar that listens, responds, asks questions, and pushes back in real time.
Organizations can create scenarios for cold calls, discovery conversations, customer support, manager feedback, retail sales, leadership, and frontline interactions. Each scenario can be tailored to a business, industry, persona, personality, and language.
After the conversation, an AI coach evaluates the learner against a role-specific skills rubric. The learner receives targeted feedback, while managers can track performance and improvement across attempts, teams, and the wider organization.
This changes Synthesia's position in the market. The platform is no longer limited to creating and distributing avatar videos. It is beginning to compete in practice, coaching, assessment, and performance readiness. The important questions are whether the scoring is valid, whether the scenarios transfer to real behaviour, and whether organizations govern recordings, learner data, bias, and manager access appropriately.
Synthesia has expanded beyond script-to-avatar video. The platform now combines Assistant, Express-2 avatars, Dubbing 2.0, motion graphics, interactive video, Roleplay Sessions, and emerging Video Agents for business communication, training, localization, practice, and skills measurement.
What makes Synthesia different from a general AI video generator?
Synthesia is designed around repeatable business communication rather than open-ended cinematic generation. Teams can convert approved source material into editable branded scenes, use consistent presenters and voices, translate the result, publish through an LMS or branded page, and measure engagement. Enterprise workflows add collaboration, Brand Kits, SCORM, identity controls, and roleplay analytics.
Where Synthesia still requires human design and governance
Professional-looking avatar delivery does not guarantee effective learning or accurate communication. Scripts need clear structure, translations need review, interactive assessments need valid scoring, and personal avatars need informed consent. Video Agents and roleplays also require privacy, bias, tool-access, and escalation controls.
About Synthesia
Synthesia is an AI video platform for business communication, training, localization, and interactive skill development. It converts prompts, scripts, documents, presentations, and web pages into branded videos using AI avatars and voices, while also supporting screen recordings, motion graphics, captions, stock media, translations, analytics, and team workflows. Assistant is a chat-based production agent that can plan, create, and revise scripts and visuals inside the editor. Express-2 avatars combine full-body gestures, facial expression, lip sync, and voice performance, while Personal Avatars can be created from an approved photo or video. Dubbing 2.0 localizes existing video with improved timing, voice quality, translation, glossary support, and lip sync. Synthesia 3.0 expands beyond static video through clickable interactions, branching, Interactive Avatars, Video Agents, and Roleplay Sessions that let learners practise real conversations, receive coaching, and track skills. Synthesia is strongest for learning and development, HR, internal communications, sales enablement, customer education, support, compliance, and global business communication. It is less suitable for cinematic filmmaking, complex live-action choreography, or unrestricted creative video generation. Script quality, instructional design, translation review, avatar consent, moderation, accessibility, and enterprise governance remain essential.
Use Cases
Key Features
- ✓ Text-to-video creation from prompts scripts documents presentations and URLs
- ✓ Assistant chat agent for planning creating and refining complete videos
- ✓ Prompt-to-video workflows with cinematic and presentation delivery styles
- ✓ Script import that preserves approved wording
- ✓ More than 240 stock AI avatars
- ✓ More than 160 supported languages and voices
- ✓ Express-2 full-body avatars with facial expression lip sync and natural gestures
- ✓ Customizable avatar outfits backgrounds environments and action footage
- ✓ Avatar B-roll that shows an avatar performing prompted actions
- ✓ Personal Avatars created from an approved photo or video
- ✓ Express-Voice cloning that preserves dialect accent rhythm and tone
- ✓ Workspace-wide pronunciation glossary and reusable pronunciation controls
- ✓ Dubbing 2.0 with improved translation timing voice quality and lip sync
- ✓ Segment-level dubbing corrections without regenerating the full video
- ✓ Motion Graphics for animated timelines charts processes and infographics
- ✓ Gemini Omni Flash public preview for text image audio and video generation or editing
- ✓ AI Playground for experimenting with media-generation features
- ✓ Generative assets for B-roll backgrounds images and supporting visuals
- ✓ Interactive videos with clickable buttons hotspots quizzes and branching
- ✓ Branded public video pages and embedded playback
- ✓ Roleplay Sessions with real-time Interactive Avatar conversations
- ✓ Roleplay coaching and automated skills scoring
- ✓ Roleplay analytics for individual team and organization progress
- ✓ Interactive Avatars and Video Agents for real-time conversation
- ✓ Business knowledge and tool connections for agent workflows where configured
- ✓ PowerPoint import with support for presentations up to current platform limits
- ✓ AI screen recording and transcript-assisted editing
- ✓ Automatic captions subtitles and multilingual playback
- ✓ Templates stock media icons music and Getty integrations by plan
- ✓ Multiple avatars in one scene on Creator and Enterprise
- ✓ Brand Kits custom fonts colors logos and templates on qualifying plans
- ✓ Live team collaboration on Enterprise
- ✓ Comments guests reviews and version control
- ✓ Viewer analytics including views completion and engagement
- ✓ SCORM export for learning-management systems on Enterprise
- ✓ API access on Creator and Enterprise
- ✓ SAML SSO SCIM and advanced role controls on qualifying enterprise plans
- ✓ SOC 2 Type II ISO 27001 ISO 27701 ISO 42001 and GDPR controls
- ✓ Consent-based avatar creation and platform content moderation
- ✓ Responsible AI governance and AI-generated content labelling support
Pricing
Basic
$0
- • 1200 credits each month
- • Up to approximately ten minutes of generated video each month
- • Twenty-five AI-generated video assets
- • Nine stock AI avatars
- • More than 160 languages and voices
- • More than sixty templates
- • Three video-editor projects
- • Synthesia watermark
- • No video downloads
- • No Personal Avatars
- • Regular content moderation
Starter
$29 per month with annual discount available
- • Everything in Basic
- • Up to approximately ten minutes of video or dubbing each month
- • Annual plans include an annual credit allowance
- • Video downloads
- • Synthesia watermark removal
- • Assistant and AI Video Assistant
- • AI Dubbing
- • More than 125 stock AI avatars
- • Three Personal Avatars
- • Customizable on-brand avatars
- • Getty Images Icons8 and expanded stock media
- • One editor and three guests
- • Chat and email support
Creator
$89 per month with annual discount available
- • Everything in Starter
- • Up to approximately thirty minutes of video or dubbing each month
- • Annual plans include an annual credit allowance
- • More than 180 stock AI avatars
- • Five Personal Avatars
- • Multiple avatars in one scene
- • Interactive videos
- • Branded video pages
- • API access within plan limits
- • One editor and five guests
- • Priority chat and email support
Enterprise
Custom
- • Everything in Creator
- • Custom credits and video volume
- • More than 240 stock AI avatars
- • Unlimited Personal Avatars subject to fair-use terms
- • One-click translation into more than eighty languages
- • Live team collaboration
- • Brand Kits and custom templates
- • SCORM export
- • SAML SSO SCIM and enterprise administration
- • Custom editor and guest limits
- • Tailored onboarding and implementation services
- • Dedicated Customer Success Manager
- • Priority moderation and support
- • Roleplay Sessions and enterprise interactive workflows where contracted
Pricing varies by plan and region — see current pricing.
Plan features change — last updated: 2026-07-22.
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Synthesia — Frequently Asked Questions
What is Synthesia best used for in 2026?
Synthesia is best used for repeatable business video, including training, onboarding, internal communication, sales enablement, product education, multilingual localization, and interactive practice.
How much does Synthesia cost?
Synthesia has a free Basic plan, Starter at twenty-nine dollars per month, Creator at eighty-nine dollars per month, and custom Enterprise pricing. Discounted annual billing is available for paid self-serve plans.
How do Synthesia credits work?
Credits are shared across usage-based generation. Each second of generated video currently uses two credits. Self-serve credits do not roll over into the next billing period.
What is Synthesia Assistant?
Assistant is a chat-based production agent that can turn prompts, scripts, documents, and URLs into videos, then revise scripts and visuals directly inside the editor.
What are Express-2 avatars?
Express-2 avatars are Synthesia's newer full-body presenters with facial expression, lip sync, voice performance, and natural hand and body gestures. Some can also appear in prompted action footage.
Can I create an avatar of myself?
Yes. Paid plans can create Personal Avatars from an approved photo or video, with live consent verification. Enterprise customers can also use additional avatar-request and studio-avatar workflows.
What is Dubbing 2.0?
Dubbing 2.0 is Synthesia's updated localization system with improved translation timing, voice naturalness, glossary support, editing, and lip sync across fast cuts, transitions, and multi-speaker scenes.
What are Roleplay Sessions?
Roleplay Sessions are live practice conversations with Interactive Avatars. Learners can rehearse sales, support, leadership, and other scenarios, receive coaching, and be scored against role-specific skills.
Does Synthesia support interactive video?
Yes. Creator and Enterprise workflows can include clickable elements, branching, quizzes, branded pages, and other interactive experiences. Advanced Roleplay and Video Agent features may require enterprise access.
Can Synthesia replace a normal video editor?
It can replace much of the production workflow for structured business video, but it is not designed for cinematic filmmaking, advanced compositing, complex choreography, or detailed long-form post-production.
Sources & References
- Official Synthesia platform overview ↗
- Official Synthesia pricing ↗
- Official Synthesia product updates ↗
- Official Synthesia video creation documentation ↗
- Official Synthesia 3.0 announcement ↗
- Official Dubbing 2.0 announcement ↗
- Official Express-2 avatar announcement ↗
- Official Roleplay Sessions and Video Agents overview ↗
- Official self-serve credit documentation ↗
- Official Personal Avatar from photo documentation ↗
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