MetaHuman Creator vs Tavus: feature comparison and explanation

A practical comparison of MetaHuman Creator vs Tavus to help you choose the right digital human solution for real-time 3D characters, face-to-face AI conversations, and high-scale video generation.

MetaHuman Creator vs Tavus: Feature comparison and explanation

What they are and what they produce

MetaHuman Creator (Epic Games) is a cloud-hosted, browser-based tool for authoring high-fidelity 3D human characters for Unreal Engine. It outputs standardized, fully rigged assets optimized for real-time use in UE, including:

• Skeletal meshes
• Grooms
• Materials
• Physics assets

These assets plug into Unreal’s animation and retargeting workflows.

Tavus is a platform for AI humans, featuring a real-time Conversational Video Interface (CVI) and a Video Generation product, built on an end-to-end multimodal pipeline. Proprietary models power:

• Perception (Raven‑0)
• Natural turn-taking (Sparrow‑0)
• Full‑face rendering (Phoenix‑3)

CVI enables real-time, interactive conversational video interfaces that see, hear, understand, and react on screen at scale. Video Generation creates script‑driven AI videos with lifelike presence, identity preservation, and leading lip sync in high resolution.

Primary outcomes

• MetaHuman Creator delivers interactive, game/film‑quality digital human assets for Unreal Engine projects.
• Tavus delivers real-time, face‑to‑face AI human conversations with sub‑1‑second latency and programmatic, high‑volume AI video generation across use cases.

How they’re built and where they fit

MetaHuman Creator offers parametric character authoring in a browser and exports to UE via Quixel Bridge. It uses:

• Standardized topology
• LODs
• Control Rig
• ARKit facial curves

It works with MetaHuman Animator and Live Link Face. Its ecosystem fit is deep integration with Unreal Engine, Quixel Bridge, and the MetaHuman plugin.

Tavus is a modular human‑AI OS where proprietary models work in concert:

• Raven‑0 for live perception
• Sparrow‑0 for conversational rhythm
• Phoenix‑3 for full‑face expression

It is API‑first with:

• White‑labeled endpoints
• Webhooks
• SDKs

It supports bring‑your‑own LLM, Knowledge Base (RAG), Memories, Objectives & Guardrails, and function calling. Plug‑and‑play intelligence lets you swap in any LLM, RAG, or TTS with a single config.

Executive summary: Who MetaHuman Creator and Tavus are for

When you’re evaluating solutions for digital humans, it’s easy to get lost in the details. MetaHuman Creator and Tavus both work with human‑like interfaces, but they’re built for different outcomes.

MetaHuman Creator in brief

MetaHuman Creator, from Epic Games, is a browser-based tool for building high-fidelity digital human assets. It’s designed for artists and teams creating detailed 3D characters for interactive Unreal Engine experiences and cinematics, with cloud-hosted authoring and a real-time viewport.

Features include:

• Preset archetypes with sculpt/blend controls
• Fully rigged body and facial rigs (ARKit‑compatible)
• One‑click export to UE via Quixel Bridge
• Multiple LODs and standardized topology
• Compatibility with MetaHuman Animator and Live Link Face

Tavus in brief

Tavus is a platform for AI humans, delivering a Conversational Video Interface for real-time, on‑screen AI humans with sub‑1‑second latency. It also offers Video Generation for studio‑grade, photorealistic AI videos at scale.

A complete human OS—Perception (Raven‑0), intelligent turn‑taking (Sparrow‑0), and full‑face rendering (Phoenix‑3)—is paired with API‑first, white‑labeled deployment.

Capabilities include:

• Plug‑and‑play LLM, RAG (Knowledge Base), and TTS
• Objectives & Guardrails
• Memories
• Function calling
• Multi‑language support

When to use which

• Choose MetaHuman Creator if you need interactive, real-time 3D characters tightly integrated with Unreal Engine workflows and tooling.
• Choose Tavus if you want lifelike, face-to-face AI humans for real-time conversations and/or to generate large volumes of photorealistic, personalized videos with APIs and white‑labeled endpoints.

Creation workflows and level of control

MetaHuman authoring and customization workflow

• Start from preset faces, then blend or sculpt to create a character.
• Configure body proportions, hair grooms, skin materials, clothing, eyes, and teeth.
• Generate MetaHuman DNA for standardized geometry and facial rig logic.
• Export to Unreal Engine via Quixel Bridge and animate with Control Rig, ARKit‑compatible curves, MetaHuman Animator, and Live Link Face.

Tavus persona, replica, and configuration workflow

• Train Replicas (AI avatars) quickly—studio grade without the studio—with as little as 1 minute of training data.
• Use Persona Builder and no‑code tools to define behavior, conversation style, Objectives & Guardrails, and Memories.
• For CVI, spin up real-time AI humans that perceive, understand, and take action via function calls.
• For Video Generation, create scripts and generate high‑resolution videos at scale via UI or API.

Depth of control vs speed of iteration

• MetaHuman Creator emphasizes deep mesh and rig customization for exacting visual control in UE.
• Tavus emphasizes speed and developer ergonomics with an end‑to‑end multimodal pipeline and sub‑1‑second conversational latency.
• It offers configurable turn‑taking, vision prompts, plug‑and‑play LLM/TTS, and APIs to launch quickly and scale.

Animation, performance, and output

MetaHuman animation options and capture workflows

• Animate with Control Rig (body and face) and UE retargeting systems.
• Use ARKit‑compatible facial curves and Live Link Face for performance capture.
• Leverage MetaHuman Animator for video‑based facial performance.

The result is real-time 3D assets ready for UE games, virtual production, or cinematics.

Tavus real-time presence, turn‑taking, and expression

• CVI enables human‑like conversations with intelligent, configurable turn‑taking (Sparrow‑0) and live perception and contextual understanding (Raven‑0).
• Sub‑1‑second response time supports natural conversational flow.
• Phoenix‑3 powers full‑face animation, micro‑expressions, identity preservation, and pixel‑perfect lip sync with studio‑grade fidelity.
• Video Generation lets you programmatically create photorealistic videos driven by scripts, with high‑resolution output and market‑leading face rendering.

Output formats and distribution targets

• MetaHuman Creator outputs rigged 3D assets—meshes, grooms, materials, rigs, and LODs—optimized for Unreal Engine.
• Tavus offers embeddable, real-time conversational video experiences via APIs/SDKs and white‑labeled endpoints, and high‑resolution videos suitable for embedding and delivery through your systems.

Integration, ecosystem, and scale

MetaHuman + Unreal/Quixel/DCC ecosystem

MetaHuman Creator features deep UE integration, Quixel Bridge export, and MetaHuman Plugin interoperability, with built-in LODs for performance scaling in real-time applications.

Tavus APIs, models, and automation

Tavus is API‑first with:

• White‑labeled endpoints
• Webhooks
• Robust SDKs

Plug‑and‑play intelligence lets you bring your own LLM and connect Knowledge Base (RAG) for document‑ and URL‑based retrieval with responses as low as 30 ms. Swap in TTS with a single config. Objectives & Guardrails drive conversations to outcomes, and Memories persist context across sessions.

The platform scales from one‑to‑many with thousands of simultaneous, lifelike conversations or generated videos.

Quality, governance, and compliance

Visual realism and interaction quality

• MetaHuman Creator uses physically based materials for skin, hair, eyes, and teeth, plus lighting and environment presets.
• Ultimate fidelity is driven by Unreal Engine scene setup.
• Tavus’s Phoenix‑3 delivers full‑face animation with micro‑movements and emotional nuance, pristine identity preservation, and industry‑leading lip sync.
• Real-time interactions are powered by Sparrow‑0 (turn‑taking) and Raven‑0 (perception) for natural, emotionally aware conversations.

Security, privacy, and enterprise controls

• With MetaHuman Creator, assets are managed within your Epic/Unreal projects.
• Tavus offers white‑labeled APIs with data control over your deployment; SOC 2 and HIPAA compliance are available on qualifying plans.
• Consent mechanisms and policies protect personal identity and responsible use.

Pricing, time‑to‑value, and when to choose which

Cost and team resourcing

• MetaHuman Creator is available through Epic Games; production use generally assumes Unreal Engine familiarity and real-time 3D workflows.
• Tavus has plans from Free to Enterprise with API access across tiers, no‑code options, a Persona Builder for fast starts, and APIs/SDKs for advanced, white‑labeled deployments.

Time to first output and scale curve

• MetaHuman Creator requires environment setup, asset authoring, and UE integration—ideal for teams versed in DCC/UE pipelines.
• Tavus lets you spin up CVI conversations with sub‑1‑second latency and generate high‑resolution videos via UI or API.
• You can then scale to thousands with white‑labeled endpoints, webhooks, and SDKs.

Decision guide

• Choose MetaHuman Creator if you need interactive, UE‑native 3D human assets with full control over rigs, materials, and runtime integration in Unreal Engine.
• Choose Tavus if your priority is real-time, on‑screen AI humans that perceive, understand, converse, and take action at sub‑1‑second latency; programmatic, high‑volume AI video generation with studio‑grade fidelity and white‑labeled APIs; and a modular human‑AI OS with plug‑and‑play LLM, RAG (Knowledge Base), TTS, Memories, Objectives & Guardrails, and function calling.

Appendix: MetaHuman Creator features (from Epic Games documentation)

Access and platform

MetaHuman Creator is a cloud‑hosted, browser‑based application with a real-time, cloud‑streamed viewport, running on supported desktop browsers. It includes personal library management to:

• Create
• Duplicate
• Rename
• Delete characters

Character creation and customization

• Author characters from a library of preset faces, then blend and sculpt facial features.
• Tune body characteristics and proportions.
• Configure skin materials for complexion, aging, and detail, plus makeup.
• Select hair and grooming with color controls, including eyebrows, eyelashes, and facial hair.
• Choose eyes and teeth with material and color variations.
• Apply clothing presets with material and color options.
• Preview poses, facial expressions, sample animations, and environment/lighting presets.

Rigging and animation compatibility

Each character ships with a fully rigged skeletal body and facial rig powered by MetaHuman DNA/Rig Logic. In Unreal Engine, you can:

• Use Control Rig for body and face
• Use ARKit‑compatible facial curves and blendshape mappings
• Use Live Link Face for capture
• Leverage MetaHuman Animator for video‑based facial performance
• Use UE retargeting systems such as IK Retargeter

Export and integration

• Export is one click to Unreal Engine via Quixel Bridge.
• Assets use standardized topology and UVs and include textures, materials, physics assets, and animation examples.
• Hair exports include strand‑based grooms with card‑based hair at lower LODs.
• MetaHuman supports Unreal Engine 4.26+ and UE5.x and provides a MetaHuman DNA asset for DCC interoperability (e.g., Maya via plugin).

Rendering, assets, and performance

• Physically based materials for skin, hair, eyes, and teeth are previewed with real-time shading and lighting.
• Multiple LODs enable performance scaling.
• A unified asset structure is optimized for real-time use in UE.

Tavus at a glance: core capabilities

Conversational Video Interface

Tavus enables real-time, lifelike AI humans with sub‑1‑second latency by running:

• Raven‑0 (perception)
• Sparrow‑0 (turn‑taking)
• Phoenix‑3 (full‑face rendering) in concert

Additional features include:

• Memories that persist context across sessions
• Objectives & Guardrails to drive conversations toward outcomes
• Function calling that lets agents take action in your systems

Video Generation

Tavus generates photorealistic, studio‑grade videos with:

• Pixel‑perfect lip sync
• Identity preservation

It is API‑first with:

• White‑labeled endpoints
• Webhooks
• Robust SDKs

You can:

• Bring your own LLM
• Add Knowledge Base (RAG) for document/URL retrieval with responses as low as 30 ms
• Swap in any TTS with a single config

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