Savi's app aims to protect consumers from realistic AI scams like kidnappers demanding ransom

Savi Security Launches AI-Powered App with $7M Funding to Combat Realistic AI Scams

In an era where artificial intelligence continues to reshape our digital lives, its malicious applications are also growing more sophisticated. A new player, Savi Security, has officially stepped into the cybersecurity arena with a fresh approach to protecting consumers from increasingly realistic AI-powered scams. The company announced the launch of its innovative mobile app for both iPhone and Android devices on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, backed by a significant $7 million in seed funding. This launch comes at a critical time when AI-driven fraud, particularly voice cloning used in elaborate imposter scams, is becoming a serious threat to individuals and families worldwide. Savi Security aims to provide a proactive defense, offering a suite of features designed to detect and neutralize these digital dangers before they can cause harm.

The Alarming Rise of AI-Powered Scams

The landscape of online and phone scams has undergone a dramatic transformation with the advent of advanced generative AI. What once required significant effort and resources for fraudsters can now be executed with alarming ease and realism. One of the most insidious forms of this new wave of fraud is AI voice cloning. Cybercriminals can now replicate a person's voice using just a few seconds of audio, often readily available from public social media posts or online videos. They then use these cloned voices to impersonate loved ones, creating highly convincing and emotionally charged scenarios. A particularly chilling example, and indeed the catalyst for Savi Security's creation, involved a personal experience of co-founder Patrick Coughlin. About two years ago, his mother received a call appearing to be from her daughter's phone number. On the line, a man claimed he had kidnapped her daughter and demanded money. The mother heard what sounded exactly like her daughter's voice pleading, "Mom, they've got me," followed by a scream. The scammer even included specific details, like referencing a local store her daughter frequented, to make the hoax even more believable. Fortunately, the mother contacted her daughter directly and confirmed she was safe, revealing the entire incident to be an AI-generated fabrication. This incident highlighted a stark reality for Patrick Coughlin, who previously held senior security product roles at Cisco and Splunk: the same level of cyber sophistication once directed at government agencies and Fortune 500 companies is now being deployed against everyday consumers. The Federal Trade Commission reported that people collectively lost an estimated $3.5 billion to imposter scams in 2025, a threefold increase from 2020. While older adults are frequently targeted, studies show that even younger generations, like Gen Z, are highly susceptible to text-based scams.

Savi's Innovative Defense: How the App Works

Savi Security, founded by brothers Patrick and Ryan Coughlin, was built around a real-time intervention model. Ryan Coughlin brings his experience as an AI and machine learning product leader from companies like Apple and Spotify, complementing Patrick's cybersecurity background. Their app is designed to act as an always-on guardian, employing behavioral AI to analyze digital communications for signs of fraud. The Savi app offers several key features to protect users across various communication channels:

• Live Call Monitoring (Savi On-Call): This is perhaps Savi's most distinctive feature. During a suspicious phone call, a user can activate the app's AI agent to listen in. This agent analyzes speech patterns, behavioral cues, and contextual indicators in real-time to identify potential scam tactics while the conversation is still happening. This proactive approach allows for intervention before a scammer can fully manipulate a victim.
• Text Protection: The app automatically screens incoming text messages, including both SMS and iMessage, filtering suspected scam and spam texts into a junk folder before they even reach the user's primary inbox. This helps reduce exposure to phishing attempts and other text-based fraud.
• Savi Voicemail: Going beyond standard voicemail, Savi's AI-powered voicemail screens unknown messages, intelligently identifying legitimate callers while filtering out spam and scam attempts. Users only see messages that are truly worth their attention.
• Scamwise Integration: Before the app's full launch, the Coughlin brothers tested their detection system with a free, anonymous website called Scamwise. This public utility allowed users to upload suspicious texts, photos, or emails for analysis. Over four months, Scamwise received more than 50,000 submissions, providing a rich dataset that was crucial for training Savi's AI models. Scamwise, which has now processed nearly 100,000 submissions, remains a free public tool available both as a standalone website (scamwise.com) and integrated into the Savi app, helping to surface emerging scam patterns in real-time.

Savi Security's technology primarily utilizes Google's Gemini as its core AI engine, but it also features a flexible gateway that can integrate other specialized models, particularly those focused on voice detection. This adaptable architecture allows the company to continuously refine its detection capabilities against evolving scam tactics.

Securing Funding and Future Momentum

The launch of the Savi app is bolstered by a successful seed funding round, where the company secured $7 million. This investment was led by Acrew Capital, with notable contributions from Magnify Ventures, TTCER, and Resolute Ventures. This significant capital injection will be used to scale the mobile application and accelerate the development of its behavioral AI technology. The investors' confidence highlights the urgent need for advanced consumer protection in the face of sophisticated AI-driven threats.

Availability and Subscription Model

The Savi app is now available for download on both iOS and Android platforms, making it accessible to a wide range of smartphone users. Savi Security offers a straightforward subscription model designed with families in mind:

• Monthly Plan: $8 per month.
• Annual Plan: $63 per year, which breaks down to approximately $5.25 per month, offering a 34% savings compared to the monthly rate.

A distinctive aspect of Savi's pricing is its family-centric approach. A single subscription covers an entire family, with no limit on the number of users. This means one account holder can extend protection to their spouse, children, parents, and other extended family members, providing a comprehensive safety net, especially for those who may be less tech-savvy. To allow users to experience its capabilities, Savi offers a 7-day free trial for monthly plans and a 14-day free trial for annual subscriptions.

Industry Implications and Significance

Savi Security's entry into the market represents a crucial step in the ongoing battle against digital fraud. While existing phone protections offer some safeguards, they were not designed to keep pace with the speed, sophistication, and scale of today's AI-powered scams. Savi aims to build upon these native protections by adding layers of real-time intelligence that are currently missing. The company's focus on live call monitoring is a significant differentiator. Many existing scam-blocking tools primarily screen messages or block known scam numbers. Savi's ability to analyze conversations as they happen offers a more dynamic and effective defense against the most convincing AI voice scams, where real-time interaction is key to the fraudster's success. The founders believe that AI has "industrialized the scam economy," making it easier and cheaper for criminals to deceive people. By creating an AI-powered solution that operates in real-time and covers entire families, Savi Security is positioned to become an essential tool for digital security, not just in the US but potentially worldwide. The success of Savi will depend on its ability to maintain high detection accuracy as scam tactics evolve and to effectively acquire users in a competitive cybersecurity landscape. The launch of Savi Security's app underscores a growing trend: as AI technology becomes more accessible, so does its potential for misuse. Companies like Savi are at the forefront of developing countermeasures, using AI to fight AI, ensuring that consumers can navigate the digital world with greater confidence and protection against increasingly realistic threats.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the core problem Savi Security's app aims to solve?

Savi Security's app aims to protect consumers from highly realistic AI-powered scams, particularly those involving voice cloning for fake ransom demands and sophisticated text-based imposter scams. These scams leverage advanced generative AI to create convincing hoaxes that exploit emotional vulnerabilities.

Who are the founders of Savi Security?

Savi Security was founded by brothers Patrick Coughlin and Ryan Coughlin. Patrick has a background in national cyber defense and senior security product roles at Cisco and Splunk, while Ryan is an AI and machine learning product leader with experience at Apple and Spotify.

How much does the Savi app cost, and what does the subscription include?

The Savi app costs $8 per month or $63 per year. A single subscription covers an entire family with no limit on the number of users, allowing one account holder to protect spouses, children, parents, and extended family members. Monthly plans include a 7-day free trial, and annual plans come with a 14-day free trial.

What makes Savi different from other scam protection tools?

Unlike many existing tools that primarily screen messages or block known scam numbers, Savi's key differentiator is its live call monitoring feature (Savi On-Call). This allows an AI agent to listen in on suspicious phone conversations in real-time, analyzing behavioral cues and contextual indicators to detect scams as they unfold. It also offers family-wide coverage under a single plan.