Avatar service

A service endpoint that returns a branded avatar for any user: photoreal, illustrated, or pixel, deterministic from a seed (user ID / email hash / initials). Built around a fallback hierarchy — real photo → upload → AI from initials → static default — with caching by seed so you pay once per user.

When to Use

• New user signup where you need an immediate profile image.
• Comment systems or forums that default to gravatars.
• Team pages, directories, leaderboards without uploaded photos.
• Placeholder avatars during onboarding before the user picks one.
• Branded alternative to Gravatar / UI Avatars / DiceBear.
• Mock data for staging/demo environments.

Not for: deepfaking real people from a single photo (wrong tool + wrong ethics), or stylizing an already-great uploaded photo — let users keep their own.

Prerequisites

Before building, ask (one message, 5 questions):