AfterLight
Memory deserves a place to rest.
A reflective, memory-grounded experience. Share memories at your own pace. Ben, an AI reflection companion, helps you organize and find meaning in what you’ve shared.
Learn more →Presence deserves to last.
Umbrella Research builds ethical, human-centered AI — a reflective space for memories of a loved one, and living guides for the places people visit.
Venues + PersonalTwo Products
5+Languages
EuropeanData Centres
ZeroApp Install
What is Umbrella Research?
Umbrella Research is a small team focused on ethical, human-centered approaches to memory and AI.
Our technology powers two products: AfterLight, a reflective space for organizing and revisiting memories of a loved one, and ALIVE, an AI-powered avatar guide that brings physical venues to life through natural voice conversation.
We value transparency, user agency, and clear ethical boundaries in everything we build.
ALIVE
Your venue, brought to life.
AI-powered avatar guides for physical venues. Visitors scan a QR code and talk to a lifelike digital guide — in their language, about the space they are in.
Learn more →Research-grade technology, built for real conversations.
We combine lifelike 3D avatars, real-time voice AI and careful data handling into products people can simply talk to.
01
Lifelike 3D Avatars
From Photo to Avatar
Lifelike 3D avatars created from photographs. Not pre-rendered video and not a 2D filter: the avatar is rendered live, in the browser.
- 3D avatars from photographs
- Rendered live in the browser
- Natural facial movement
- Created from a single photo
02
Real-Time Voice AI
Natural Voice Conversation
Two-way voice conversation with real-time lip sync. The avatar speaks with natural mouth movement, not canned animation. We work with leading voice AI models, for example Gemini Live, and can change them over time.
- Leading voice AI models, which we can change
- Lip sync generated live from the voice
- Designed for a quick, natural reply
- Auto language detection (5+ languages)
03
Designed for Privacy
European Data Centres
Hosting and application data sit in European data centres. Designed with GDPR in mind: encrypted in transit and at rest, and no audio recordings kept for ALIVE. Exceptions are listed in our privacy policy.
- Hosted in European data centres
- Encrypted in transit and at rest
- Analytics only with your consent
- Data deleted on request
AI that serves people, not the other way around.
Every design decision is guided by ethical principles. Our products are not simulations of consciousness — they are tools for reflection and guidance, constrained by design.
Consent First
Avatars are made only at the request of the user or venue, and users can delete what they created at any time.
Psychological Safety
Clear rules limit what the AI may do: no therapy or advice, no claim to be a real person, no encouragement of dependency.
Transparency by Design
AI-generated output is clearly labeled as AI-generated, and the avatar never claims to be a real person.
User Control
People decide what to share and can stop, change or delete it at any time.
Building at the edge of what’s possible.
Umbrella Research is moving from incubation to market with two products, a first venue pilot, and European hosting designed with GDPR in mind.
Venues + PersonalTwo Products
Real-TimeLip Sync
EU HostingBuilt with GDPR in Mind
1st PilotNeckarCup 2026
Company Roadmap
Q1 2026Incubation CompleteCore platform built: the AfterLight reflection engine, avatar technology and hosting in European data centres.
Q2 2026ALIVE Launch & AcceleratorFirst ALIVE venue pilot (NeckarCup).
Targeting Q1 2027Platform BetaPlannedPublic beta for early adopters and research partners.
Targeting Q2 2027Commercial LaunchPlannedGeneral availability.
Invest in human-centered AI.
We’re raising seed funding to scale infrastructure, expand venue deployments, hire key research talent, and bring both products to market.
Join the research frontier.
We are selectively onboarding research partners, early adopters, venue operators, and academic collaborators. Access to our platform and ALIVE venue deployments is available to qualified applicants.
EARLY ACCESS PROGRAM
Get in touch
Tell us about your work and how you’d like to collaborate. We review every application.