Emergence of AI-Generated Influencers
The social media influencing sector is experiencing the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI)-generated influencers. Simone Mckenzie, a student at the University of Illinois, created an AI influencer named Gigi. Gigi produces videos depicting activities such as eating, skincare routines, and makeup application. A distinguishing feature of Gigi's content includes scenarios that defy physical reality, such as consuming pizza made of molten lava or applying snowflakes as lip gloss, and instances where objects pass through her hands.
Ms. Mckenzie utilizes AI chatbots, including Google Veo 3, to generate these videos. This content genre is sometimes referred to as "AI slop" by certain observers. One of Ms. Mckenzie's videos reportedly generated $1,600 in revenue over four days. Within two months, Gigi's content accumulated millions of views, resulting in thousands of dollars for Ms. Mckenzie through TikTok's creator fund, which compensates creators based on viewership.
Jessa Lingel, an associate professor and digital culture expert at the University of Pennsylvania, notes a surge in AI-generated content. AI creators can produce video content rapidly, often within minutes, and at lower costs compared to traditional methods.
Impact on the Influencer Economy
The influencer industry is estimated to be valued at over $250 billion, according to Goldman Sachs. Traditional influencers typically create content based on their personal experiences, requiring resources such as specialized equipment, detailed planning, and extensive editing. For example, Kaaviya Sambasivam, a human influencer with approximately 1.3 million followers, reports that video production can take several hours to multiple days.
In contrast, AI creators can generate content quickly, bypassing many traditional production steps. Ms. Mckenzie states she can produce up to three videos daily in a matter of minutes. Ms. Mckenzie indicated that she pursued AI content creation due to limitations in financial resources, time, and suitable production environments for traditional influencing.
Characteristics of AI Content
Ms. Mckenzie designed Gigi to be 21 years old, with tanned skin, green eyes, freckles, winged eyeliner, and long black hair. Gigi's videos frequently feature her responding to comments questioning her AI nature, followed by demonstrating actions such as consuming a bedazzled avocado or a cookie made of slime, which are not based in reality.
The use of digital alterations in media predates current AI video technology, with examples including image editing software like Photoshop and facial modification applications such as FaceTune. Celebrity deepfakes emerged in the late 2010s as a precursor to contemporary hyper-realistic AI videos. Current AI videos exhibit heightened realism and can propagate rapidly across platforms.
AI-generated videos encompass various genres, from animated depictions (e.g., a cartoon cat working at McDonald's) to hyper-realistic simulations (e.g., fake doorbell camera footage). Examples of other successful AI content creators include:
- An American woman in South Korea who created an AI puppy named Gamja, generating millions of views and brand partnerships.
- Daniel Riley, 27, who produces "time travel" videos (e.g., "POV: you wake up in Pompeii on eruption day"), garnering millions of views and nearly 600,000 subscribers. Riley also offers a paid bootcamp for teaching AI video creation.