Influencers are often criticized for being artificial. False sets, staged scenes, use of filters: very few elements of their photos seem real.
However, a new trend is pushing the boundaries of what is true and what is not.
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South Korean influencer Rozy has 137,000 followers. His account is like all the others on Instagram, especially those of his fellow Koreans. Travel photos, clothes photos, makeup photos, photos with friends, etc. She is a singer, dancer and model.
The only difference between Rozy and all the other influencers is that Rozy doesn’t exist.
It is an artificial creation of the Seoul firm Sidus Studio X.
So how does it work?
Sometimes images of Rozy are created 100% by computers; other times, such as when she’s posing for company clothes, her head is superimposed over a photo of a flesh-and-blood mannequin.
Like a true influencer, Rozy builds an audience by revealing bits of her life on social media. Obviously, since it does not exist, a team takes care of it. Rozy replies to messages from her admirers and she even leaves comments under other people’s photos.
Since its creation in 2020, Rozy has won contracts with several companies, generating considerable profits for the firm. In 2022, Rozy is projected to generate over $1.5 million in profits for its creators.
But she’s not the only one. The artificial intelligence (AI) influencer industry is booming. Personalities such as Rozy, that is to say perfect, who do not age and who never create controversy, are very attractive to companies.
Creating an advertisement with an artificial influencer is done in a few days; with a real person, the process is much longer.
In a world where beauty standards are already almost unattainable, many describe the phenomenon as very worrying.
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