Transform your interview prep with lifelike AI mock interviews powered by conversational video AI—customize personas, get instant feedback, and practice anytime for real results.
Imagine logging in for an interview practice session—not with a tired friend or a scripted chatbot, but with a lifelike AI interviewer who greets you, listens to your responses, observes your body language, and adapts to your every answer. This is the new reality of AI mock interview, where Tavus’s Conversational Video Interface (CVI) brings together advanced perception, speech, and language models to create a truly interactive, human-like experience.
Whether you’re a job seeker, student, or part of an organization, you now have access to a personal interview gym, available around the clock. Inside, you’ll find a diverse cast of AI personas ready to help you master every scenario and build your confidence.
Why AI mock interviews are a game changer
Traditional interview prep—relying on friends, coaches, or solo practice—often falls short. Scheduling is tough, feedback is limited, and it’s nearly impossible to simulate real interview pressure. Practicing alone is a lot like shooting hoops by yourself: you miss out on the unpredictability and challenge of a real game.
AI mock interview, especially when powered by Tavus’s CVI, changes this experience entirely. With conversational video AI, you interact with an AI that talks, listens, and even observes your body language. It asks questions like a real interviewer, gives instant, unbiased feedback, and adapts to your responses, challenging you in new ways each time. You can practice anytime, anywhere, and as often as you want—no more waiting for someone else’s schedule.
Organizations benefit, too. Schools, bootcamps, and hiring platforms can scale personalized coaching to hundreds or thousands of users, offering consistent, high-quality practice without hiring an army of human coaches. This approach democratizes access to effective interview prep, making it available to anyone who wants to improve.
Start leveraging AI mock interview to build confidence, sharpen your skills, and prepare for any interview scenario. The more you practice, the more you’ll see measurable improvement—so dive in and start experiencing the difference.
What makes an AI mock interview special?
An AI mock interview isn’t just a chatbot firing off questions. Picture a virtual interviewer who not only asks about your experience but also notices if you’re fidgeting, looking away, or showing signs of nervousness. That’s the power of Tavus’s CVI, which combines conversational AI with video-based digital humans.
With Tavus, you interact with AI personas that look and act like real people. It’s like FaceTiming with a super-smart robot who knows exactly how to challenge you. The CVI’s perception model observes your environment and body language, while the speech-to-text (STT) and large language model (LLM) components ensure your responses are understood and evaluated in real time. The text-to-speech (TTS) system delivers natural, supportive feedback, making every session feel like a real conversation.
Feedback is immediate and unbiased. The AI listens to your answers, watches your non-verbal cues, and provides actionable tips to help you improve. This creates a powerful feedback loop: you practice, receive advice, and get better each time. You don’t have to wonder if your friend is just being polite—AI gives you the honest insights you need to grow.
Harness the unique capabilities of AI mock interview to experience truly interactive, personalized practice sessions that prepare you for the real thing. Take advantage of instant feedback and lifelike interactions to accelerate your progress.
Meet your AI interviewer: Persona creation and customization
Not all interviewers are created equal. Sometimes you’ll face a friendly HR manager, and other times a tough technical lead. With Tavus, you can design AI personas to match any interviewer type, making your practice sessions as realistic as possible.
Personas act like costumes for your AI interviewer. You can choose from technical leads who dive deep into your coding skills, HR managers who focus on soft skills, industry experts who test your domain knowledge, or even challenging interviewers who throw curveballs your way. Each persona helps you practice different skills and prepares you for a variety of real-world scenarios.
Customization goes even further. You can fine-tune your AI persona to reflect specific industries, job roles, seniority levels, or interview styles—behavioral, technical, or stress interviews. The more you tailor your persona, the more authentic your practice will feel.
Replicas take this flexibility to the next level. A replica is a copy of a persona that you can tweak for different scenarios. Want to practice with a supportive mentor today and a tough manager tomorrow? Just switch replicas. You can build a whole team of interviewers, each ready to help you tackle a new challenge.
Experiment with persona customization in AI mock interview and see how different interviewer styles can push you to new heights. The more varied your practice, the more confident and prepared you’ll become.
Step-by-step: Creating your AI mock interview persona
Building your own AI mock interview persona with Tavus is straightforward and highly customizable. Here’s how you can create a persona that fits your exact needs:
- Access the Persona Builder: Go to the Tavus Developer Portal and select the Conversational Video Interface (CVI) section. Here, you’ll find options to create and manage personas.
Once you’re in the Persona Builder, you can choose a stock persona, like an AI Interviewer or History Teacher, or start with a blank template. Stock personas come with predefined behaviors and interview styles, making it easy to get started.
Next, configure your persona’s identity and behavior. Assign a name and define the persona’s professional background, such as “Mary, Principal at a top consulting firm.” Set the interview style—supportive, challenging, conversational, or formal. You can also write detailed instructions for the persona’s behavior, like focusing on communication skills, guiding candidates through case studies, or maintaining a professional yet approachable tone.
Enable the full Tavus conversational pipeline to unlock the complete experience. This includes the perception model, which allows the persona to observe candidate behavior and environment, detecting distractions or nervousness. The speech-to-text (STT) engine provides real-time transcription and smart turn detection. The large language model (LLM) powers natural, context-aware conversation and intelligent follow-up questions. The text-to-speech (TTS) system delivers responses in a natural, spoken-word tone.
Customize your interview structure and content by defining the interview flow—such as introduction, background questions, case study, and wrap-up. Add specific questions, case scenarios, and feedback prompts. You can also set up ambient awareness queries for the perception model, like “Is the candidate looking at other screens?”
Once your persona is ready, use the API to create a conversation and join the session using the provided conversation URL. Test your persona in action, then adjust settings, system prompts, and perception queries based on feedback and practice sessions. You can create multiple replicas for different interview scenarios or styles, giving you a flexible toolkit for every situation.
For example, you might build a supportive HR persona with a friendly tone who focuses on communication and cultural fit, or a technical lead persona who’s direct and detail-oriented, pressing for technical depth. You can even create a stress interview persona who asks tough questions and simulates high-pressure environments.
Start building your own AI mock interview personas today to create the most realistic and effective practice sessions possible. Experiment with different configurations and see which styles best prepare you for your target roles.
Exploring the possibilities: Where can you use AI mock interviews?
AI mock interview isn’t just for job seekers—it’s a powerful tool for anyone looking to improve their interview skills. Individuals can build confidence, tackle tricky questions, and get comfortable with a variety of interviewer styles.
Organizations, schools, and bootcamps can offer standardized, scalable practice to large groups, track progress, and ensure everyone is ready for the real thing. With customizable personas, you can match the AI interviewer to your company culture or specific job requirements.
The data collected from sessions highlights common mistakes and skill gaps, helping both individuals and organizations focus on areas that need improvement. You can explore creative uses for AI mock interview, from onboarding new employees to preparing students for campus placements. Use these data-driven insights to continually refine your approach and maximize results.
The future of interview prep: AI, video, and human touch
Video-based AI mock interview is the next frontier. It doesn’t just listen to your words—it watches your body language, eye contact, and delivery, capturing the full spectrum of communication. Practicing on video helps you perfect your first impression and non-verbal cues, which are critical in real interviews.
Tavus’s vision is to empower you with customizable, human-like AI interviewers that are always available and never judge. Advanced personas can be supportive, challenging, or anything in between, creating a safe space for you to experiment and learn. With the flexibility to design any scenario, you’re limited only by your imagination.
Embrace the future of AI mock interview and take control of your interview prep. Use video, lifelike personas, and instant feedback to practice smarter and achieve your goals.
Your next step: Start practicing with AI mock interviews
AI mock interview unlocks a world of possibilities for anyone aiming to improve their interview skills. With Tavus’s CVI, you can create lifelike personas, receive instant feedback, and practice in realistic, video-based scenarios—whenever and however you want.
Choose your ideal interviewer, customize your practice, and start building the confidence you need to succeed. Dive into AI mock interview today and take the next step toward mastering your interviews.
Getting started with Tavus
Ready to try AI mock interview for yourself? Here’s how you can get started right away:
- Create your Tavus account to access the platform.
- Explore the tools for building and customizing AI mock interview personas.
- Experiment with the Conversational Video Interface (CVI) to experience lifelike interview practice.
- Use the Starter kit: How to create an AI mock interview for additional guidance and inspiration.