Human social media stars might want to be on the lookout, as a new influencer created entirely from artificial intelligence has already snatched up more than 100 endorsements in less than a year.
Influencers that only exist in cyberspace aren’t exactly new – just take a look at recent ‘personalities’ like VTubers, KDA from League of Legends, or AI-generated influencer lilmiquela (who boasts over 3 million followers on Instagram).
However, the computer-generated world seems to be catching the eye of advertisers as of late, who are giving more and more sponsorships and endorsements to these “virtual humans” instead of the real thing.
Seems like a theme right out of a science fiction novel, right? Well, it’s completely real, and one Korean AI-created influencer has already nabbed over 100 endorsements after debuting on social media in December of 2020.
Let us introduce Rozy, who, from her pictures, seems to be a regular 22-year-old Instagram star. However, like lilmiquela, she’s not a real person at all.
Instead, Rozy was created entirely from AI by South Korean company Sidus Studio X in August of 2020, before launching her social media later on that year.
According to Sidus CEO Baek Seung Yeop, Rozy has already landed more than 100 sponsorships and endorsements, and is set to make close to $1 million in 2021.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
“She has landed more than 100 sponsorships now, but we have not been able to process them yet,” Yeop said in a release. “We have achieved our goal profit now, and I think Rozy will be able to make more than 1 billion KRW (~$854,007) by the end of this year.”
So, why do advertisers seem to be turning to an AI-generated influencer instead of the real thing? Well, for one, these so-called “virtual humans” don’t have to worry about petty things like drama, fatigue, or even human emotions.
“These days, celebrities are sometimes withdrawn because of school, violence, scandals, or bullying controversies,” Yeop explained. “However, virtual humans have zero scandals to worry about.”
Not only is she 100% drama-free, she’ll also never age past 22 years old or get sick. On top of that, there’s no chance of things from her past coming back to bite her, since she has no past to worry about!
That means she could operate as a model or spokesperson indefinitely. She can also go anywhere and do anything advertisers want her to do, in much less time than a real human would need… and for much cheaper.
So, to all the actual human beings that are content creators and social media stars out there — you might want to watch out. We’re entering a brave new world, and your biggest competition might not be other influencers before too long, but the computers and algorithms behind them.
