How AI Influencers Are Taking Social Media by Storm—and Earning Millions

Online Influencers have developed into effective marketing tools for global fashion powerhouses like Dior, Calvin Klein, Chanel, and Prada in a world dominated by social media. Lil Miquela, Imma, and supermodel Shudu are three names that stick out above the others; together, they have made millions of dollars via lucrative collaborations with well-known companies.

The hitch: none of mentioned online influencers are actual people.

The most well-known virtual influencer, Lil Miquela, has an astounding 3.6 million TikTok and 2.7 million Instagram followers. She has an eight-figure net worth and is famous for her friendship with fellow virtual "star" Blawko. She also charges a staggering $10,000 for each Instagram post.

Lil Miquela is just one of the numerous computer-generated personalities that have swept the influencer community off their feet and were developed by the American AI startup Brud.

Welcome to the world of AI influencers, worth $4.5 billion and expected to climb 26% by 2025, according to analysts, per The US Sun. These artificial intelligence-generated figures are the creations of digital artists and graphic designers who use AI to create remarkably lifelike identities.

When working with prominent corporations, the tech companies that created these avatars may charge up to $10,000 for a single social media post, making them a successful commercial endeavor.

These online influencers are so intriguing because they are credible. Many followers believe they are communicating with actual people since the profiles are designed to seem like real people. This pattern is further shown by a recent event involving the Nordic model Milla Sofia.

Despite Milla's explicit declaration that she is a "19-year-old robot girl," most of her Twitter followers were duped into thinking that her stunning bikini photographs were real, with just a few realizing that she is an AI fabrication.

Changing The Ads Landscape

According to industry analysts, the emergence of virtual influencers will transform the advertising environment. The creator of the influencer marketing company IZEA, Ted Murphy, emphasizes the limitless creative possibilities these AI avatars provide to audience engagement, brand narrative, and marketing. They have no physical restrictions, maybe in several locations at once, and can change at a whim, in contrast to human influencers.

AI influencers also provide marketers with much more control over their messages. Estelle Keeber, an Instagram specialist, claims that AI broadcasters don't have any personal prejudices or divisive viewpoints that may hurt a brand's reputation. They may also maintain a steady online presence, publishing at scheduled times without becoming weary, assuring ongoing interaction with the target audience and new clients.

However, Transparency and AI-generated influencers' effect on their audience are subjects of concern. According to a Fullscreen TBH Community study, 42% of Gen Z and Millennials have followed an influencer without understanding it was CGI, according to Highbrow Magazine. These tech-savvy generations desire to understand who created the AI and if it is associated with a particular company.

Unrealistic But Effective

AI Influencers also have a propensity to literally or figuratively reproduce unachievable aims. Image-generating algorithms like Midjourny, Stable Diffusion, and DALL-E 2 have learned to mimic varied styles and textures from existing photographs to illustrate people's hands authentically, per Daily Mail.

Despite these difficulties, the phenomenon of virtual influencers is still growing. Natalia Novak, an AI influencer from Los Angeles, California, is 21 years old and has 14,000 followers. Through a tip jar and Patreon account, Natalia provides unique content to her fans, demonstrating the growing attraction and profitability of the online influencer industry.

The realm of AI influencers will continue to change how marketers connect with customers and how social media affects lifestyle as the AI technology that powers these characters advance.