# Gil Perry

> Gil Perry is the co-founder and CEO of D-ID, an AI video company whose journey runs from shielding faces against recognition systems to building real-time digital humans. A Tel Aviv University computer science graduate and former Houseparty engineer, Perry helped turn a personal frustration with photo privacy into a Y Combinator startup, then steered it through a counterintuitive pivot into synthetic video, conversational avatars, a Microsoft partnership, and the acquisition of simpleshow.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and CEO at D-ID
- **Organizations:** D-ID, Houseparty, Life On Air, NICE Systems, Y Combinator, Tel Aviv University
- **Nationality:** Israeli
- **Education:** B.Sc. in Computer Science, Tel Aviv University
- **Known for:** Invented an early algorithm designed to protect photos from misuse by facial-recognition systems., Co-founded D-ID and took the company through Y Combinator's Summer 2017 batch., Led D-ID's transition from facial de-identification into AI-generated video and conversational digital humans.

## Career timeline

- **Before 2016** — Worked in technical and business roles at technology companies including NICE Systems and Houseparty; at Houseparty he served as a senior software engineer.
- **2016** — Co-founded D-ID with Sella Blondheim and Eliran Kuta after earlier work on protecting photographs from facial-recognition systems.
- **2017** — D-ID incorporated and joined Y Combinator's Summer 2017 batch.
- **2018** — D-ID presented its facial de-identification technology at TechCrunch Disrupt.
- **2019-2020** — Perry led D-ID's pivot from facial-recognition privacy toward photo animation, synthetic video, and digital humans.
- **2021** — D-ID technology powered MyHeritage's Deep Nostalgia, which animated more than 100 million photos, and Perry demonstrated Speaking Portrait at TechCrunch Disrupt.
- **2023** — D-ID expanded from scripted video generation toward real-time conversational digital people connected to large language models.
- **2024** — D-ID promoted its Natural User Interface vision and expanded its enterprise focus around interactive digital humans.
- **2025** — D-ID partnered with Microsoft to bring AI-powered avatars to Azure and announced the acquisition of Berlin-based simpleshow.
- **2026** — D-ID began integrating simpleshow into its video workflow and launched V4 expressive visual agents and Agentic Videos.

## Achievements

- Invented an early algorithm designed to protect photos from misuse by facial-recognition systems.
- Co-founded D-ID and took the company through Y Combinator's Summer 2017 batch.
- Led D-ID's transition from facial de-identification into AI-generated video and conversational digital humans.
- Helped bring D-ID technology to MyHeritage's Deep Nostalgia, which animated more than 100 million photographs.
- Presented D-ID technology at TechCrunch Disrupt and has spoken at SXSW and other technology events.
- Established a Microsoft partnership bringing D-ID avatar technology to Azure in 2025.
- Led D-ID's 2025 acquisition of simpleshow, adding an enterprise video platform and more than 1,500 corporate customers.

## Latest updates

- **2026-04** — D-ID launched Agentic Videos, a format designed to let viewers interrupt video, ask questions, and receive context-aware responses.
- **2026-03** — D-ID launched V4 expressive visual agents for real-time interaction connected to large language models.
- **2026-01** — D-ID made simpleshow's explainer-video workflow available to D-ID users as an early step in integrating the acquired platform.
- **2025-09** — D-ID announced its acquisition of simpleshow; the combined business was described as serving more than 1,500 enterprise customers.
- **2025-05** — Microsoft published a customer story describing D-ID's migration to Azure, its reported 100x growth, and its work on scalable visual agents.
- **2025-03** — D-ID announced a Microsoft partnership to bring its AI-powered avatars to Azure and Microsoft software ecosystems.

## Links

- Website: https://www.d-id.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gil-perry-d-id
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/D_ID_
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@d-id
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/d_id.ai/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deidentification/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/gil-perry
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-26