After a deepfake voice fooled her grandfather, this founder sprang into action
techcrunch ·
After her grandfather was scammed by a deepfake voice impersonating his brother, Tarini Padmanabhuni founded DetectifAI to combat AI-driven fraud. The startup aims to integrate compact, on-device detection models directly into smartphone operating systems, ensuring audio never leaves the user's device for enhanced privacy and speed. Unlike competitors that rely on cloud-based servers, DetectifAI licenses its SDK to phone manufacturers, hoping to make deepfake detection a standard feature akin to camera resolution. The company already generates early revenue by processing over 100,000 monthly calls for Indian financial institutions, utilizing speaker verification and deepfake detection. Padmanabhuni, who began machine learning work at age 12, highlights the emotional impact of the technology after a beta tester expressed willingness to pay for protection their relatives lacked. DetectifAI has secured seed funding from Josh Constine and Manohar Kamath and is competing in TechCrunch’s Startup Battlefield. This initiative addresses a growing crisis where Americans lost nearly $900 million to AI scams last year, with seniors disproportionately affected.
techcrunch