A new wave of social media creators are earning thousands of dollars and attracting millions of views without ever appearing on camera. Instead, they use artificial intelligence to generate virtual influencers, characters who can produce content faster and cheaper than their human counterparts, sparking a debate about the future of the creator economy.
Simone Mckenzie, a 21-year-old student, created an AI influencer named Gigi and quickly found financial success. One of Gigi's videos alone generated $1,600 in just four days through TikTok's creator fund, a program that pays based on viewership. This rapid success highlights a growing trend that could reshape the $250 billion influencer industry.
Key Takeaways
- AI-generated influencers are achieving viral success and significant earnings on platforms like TikTok.
- Creators use AI tools to produce videos in minutes, a fraction of the time it takes human influencers.
- The trend is seen as both a democratizing force for content creation and a potential threat to the established influencer economy.
- Experts express concern over the blurring lines between reality and AI content, raising issues of misinformation and media literacy.
The Rise of the Virtual Creator
On social media, Gigi appears like many other influencers. She shares clips of herself eating, applying makeup, and talking to her followers. But Gigi isn't real. She is an AI-generated character created by University of Illinois student Simone Mckenzie.
Using AI video generation tools like Google Veo 3, Mckenzie can create content for Gigi by simply typing in prompts. In a matter of minutes, she can produce a video that would take a human creator hours or even days to film and edit. She sometimes posts up to three videos a day.
Gigi’s content often plays with her artificial nature. She starts many videos with the line, "Stop calling me AI," before proceeding to do something impossible, like eating pizza made of lava. This blend of hyper-realism and absurdity has captivated audiences, earning Mckenzie millions of views.
What is 'AI Slop'?
Some critics and viewers use the term "AI slop" to describe the flood of low-effort, AI-generated content on social media. While some of it is creative, the term often refers to videos that are quickly produced to capitalize on trends and algorithms, sometimes at the expense of quality or originality.
Mckenzie is not alone. A growing number of digital creators are leveraging AI to achieve rapid virality. Experts note this genre of content is surging across social media feeds, disrupting the established norms of online content creation.
A New Challenge for Human Influencers
The efficiency of AI content creation presents a significant challenge to human influencers. Kaaviya Sambasivam, a 26-year-old creator with over 1.3 million followers, spends days producing a single video. Her process involves shopping for materials, planning the content, setting up lighting and cameras, shooting, and extensive editing.
"It bears the question: is this going to be something that we can out-compete? Because I am a human. My output is limited," Sambasivam stated. "There are months where I will be down in the dumps, and I'll post just the bare minimum. I can't compete with robots."
The influencer industry, valued at over $250 billion by Goldman Sachs, was built on the authenticity and personal lives of real people. AI creators can replicate the aesthetics of this content without the time, financial investment, or personal vulnerability required of their human counterparts.
Brooke Duffy, a digital and social media scholar at Cornell University, explained that while digital alterations like Photoshop have been common for years, today's AI tools represent a major leap. "It certainly has the potential to upset the creator space," she noted, highlighting the speed and realism of new AI video generators.
Democratizing Fame or Devaluing Content?
Proponents argue that AI tools can level the playing field. Mckenzie said she considered becoming a traditional influencer but lacked the money, time, and aesthetically pleasing environment. "My desk at home has a lot of books and stuff," she said. "It's not the most visually appealing. It definitely makes it easier that you can just pick whatever background you want with AI."
This accessibility allows individuals without professional equipment or picture-perfect homes to participate in the creator economy.
The Scope of AI Creation
The trend extends beyond virtual people. One popular TikTok account features an AI-generated puppy named Gamja who cooks and wears headphones, securing brand partnerships. Another creator, Daniel Riley, has gained nearly 600,000 subscribers by making "time travel" videos that place viewers in historical events like the eruption of Pompeii.
Jessa Lingel, an associate professor and digital culture expert at the University of Pennsylvania, sees this as a potential democratization of online fame. However, she also warns of the downsides.
"You're going to see a rise in misinformation, you're going to see a rise in scams, you're going to see a rise in content that's just…crappy," Lingel said. The ease of production could lead to a deluge of low-quality content designed solely to game algorithms.
Can We Still Tell What's Real?
A significant concern is the increasing difficulty in distinguishing AI-generated content from reality. While Gigi’s videos are intentionally surreal, many AI creations are designed to be hyper-realistic, from fake doorbell camera footage to historical recreations.
This blurring of lines poses a particular risk to younger audiences who may not have developed strong media literacy skills. According to Lingel, it may soon be "almost impossible for an ordinary human to tell the difference."
The creator of the AI puppy Gamja reports that she regularly receives messages from concerned followers who believe the dog is real and are worried about it eating foods that are unhealthy for actual dogs. This confusion highlights the challenge society faces as AI technology becomes more sophisticated and widespread.
While a Harvard University study shows many young users are already using AI to generate images and music, the broader implications remain uncertain. As Duffy observed, the key question is whether human discernment can keep pace with rapidly improving technology, ensuring that social media remains a space for authentic connection rather than just artificial engagement.