Vapi: Voice AI Agent Platform
Vapi is the developer-first voice AI platform. The pitch is straightforward: build and deploy voice AI agents at enterprise scale. Vapi's homepage cites under 500ms average latency, 1 billion calls supported, 99.9% uptime for enterprise clients, and 2.5M+ agents launched. The company raised a Series B of $50M, signaling serious traction in the voice agent category.
The 30-second version
- What: developer voice AI platform with sub-500ms latency
- Who: developers and enterprises building production voice agents
- Price: per-minute usage; enterprise tiers via sales
- Best at: developer flexibility at scale, telephony, multi-language
- Verdict: pick Vapi as the default for new developer-led voice agent builds in 2026
What Vapi actually is
Vapi handles the full voice agent stack: speech-to-text, LLM reasoning, text-to-speech, telephony, and real-time monitoring. You configure the voice, the conversation flow, the telephony numbers, and the integrations. Vapi runs the underlying infrastructure that keeps latency low and uptime high.
The Amazon Ring case study on Vapi's homepage is concrete: "zero to production in two weeks, and 100% of our inbound volume now runs through Vapi. CSAT scores have improved." GoHealth claims "$10M+ saved annually over one million calls." Those numbers signal that Vapi has crossed the line from prototype tool to production-grade voice infrastructure.
Vapi supports English, Spanish, Italian, French, and multi-lingual conversations. Real-time monitoring lets your team intervene mid-call when needed.
Key capabilities
- Under 500ms average latency
- End-to-end voice stack: STT, LLM, TTS, telephony
- Enterprise-grade configurability (voice, flow, integrations)
- Real-time monitoring
- Multi-language support (English, Spanish, Italian, French, more)
- 1 billion calls supported in production
- 99.9% uptime for enterprise clients
- 2.5M+ agents launched on the platform
Pricing
Vapi's pricing is per-minute with enterprise tiers via sales contracts. Specific per-minute rates depend on the model and TTS voice you pick. See vapi.ai/pricing for current rates.
Who Vapi fits
- Developers building production voice agents
- Companies replacing high-volume call center work with AI
- Sales and support teams scaling outbound or inbound call volume
- Builders who need under 500ms latency for natural conversations
Who Vapi does not fit
- Teams that need on-premise deployment for compliance (Bland is better here)
- Solo operators with low call volume (cost-per-minute adds up; cheaper SaaS voice tools fit smaller use cases)
- Workflows that are not voice-first (use n8n, Make, or a chat-based agent platform)
Vapi vs Retell and Bland
| Axis | Vapi | Retell | Bland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latency claim | Under 500ms | ~600ms (claims leader) | Not published |
| Scale claim | 1 billion calls, 2.5M agents | Not published | Enterprise customer-cited |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud | Cloud + on-prem + VPC |
| Languages | EN, ES, IT, FR + more | Multi-language | 40+ languages |
| Best for | Developer flexibility at scale | Lowest-latency turn-taking | Enterprise + compliance |
Full breakdown: Vapi vs Retell.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Largest scale among the developer voice platforms (1B calls)
- Under 500ms latency is genuinely conversational
- Developer-first API and configurability
Cons:
- No on-prem deployment (Bland is better for that)
- Per-minute pricing requires planning at scale
- Less marketed for low-volume solo use cases
How I'd think about Vapi on SellerShorts
If a SellerShorts tool builder shipped an outbound AI sales agent that called Amazon agency prospects, Vapi would be my default recommendation. The developer flexibility, the Amazon Ring case study, and the under-500ms latency match what a serious voice agent needs. Pair Vapi with the OpenAI Agents SDK Realtime API for the LLM side, or with the Claude Agent SDK if you prefer Anthropic-side LLM work, and you have a credible production stack.
Try Vapi
Get started with Vapi
Developer-first signup, per-minute pricing. Enterprise tiers via sales.
Selling on Amazon and want AI tools sized for your stack? See the Amazon AI hub.
Frequently asked questions
What is Vapi?
Vapi is a platform for building and deploying voice AI agents at enterprise scale. The platform handles orchestration, real-time monitoring, telephony, and integrations. Per Vapi's homepage, the platform has supported 1 billion calls with 99.9% uptime for enterprise clients and 2.5M+ agents launched.
What is Vapi's latency?
Under 500ms average latency, according to Vapi's marketing. For voice agents, latency is the single most important quality metric. Under 500ms feels like a natural conversation; over 1 second feels robotic.
Vapi vs Retell vs Bland: which should I pick?
Vapi wins on developer flexibility and the largest existing scale. Retell is the latency leader per its own benchmarks. Bland positions for enterprise with infrastructure ownership and compliance. For most developer-led voice agent builds in 2026, Vapi is the default starting point.
Has Vapi raised funding?
Yes. Vapi raised a Series B of $50M. The funding signals serious traction in the voice agent category. Customer claims on Vapi's homepage include Amazon Ring ('zero to production in two weeks, 100% of inbound volume') and GoHealth ('$10M+ saved annually over one million calls').