CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) Content Creators – another league by itself. Messy, you may think but it has it’s Pro’s.Â
Who are they?
A CGI made Digital Influencer is an image curated by Artificial Intelligence but designed by a Graphic Designer on the backend. In other words, it’s not a human being who has chosen to be an influencer that walks our planet, – but a computer created and controlled persona.
Why have they not popped on my feed?
Geo-locations, suggested friends to follow, your search history and the type of content you consume on IG are responsible for this. At first, it might seem strange to use a robot for Influencer marketing, but the fact is that Digital Influencers have already become a hot topic and several of the world’s biggest brands have used them for very successful campaigns. Feeling a bit lost? Many do. Most of us do not know about this sub-type because either it has not popped up on our feed or because we ignorantly shrug the topic of ‘robots’.
Who hires them?
These Digital Infleuncers are usually hired by Fashion and Lifestyle industries. That being said, in the last couple of months, several of the most prominent digital models have started taking YouTube by storm proving that Digital Influencers can handle more than just Instagram ads. So they do Instagram and can perform like a real-life human beings on Youtube with likes and views of real time humans.
A list of AI Influencers you might want to familiarise yourself with:
Lil Miquela
Miquela Sousa, or Lil Miquela, is a character which was created by Trevor McFedries and Sara DeCou as a Marketing tool. Miquela has been featured in product endorsements for streetwear and luxury brands such as Calvin Klein and Prada and many more. She depicts the life of a 19-year-old living in LA who is starting her career in the music industry. She currently has a roaring followership of 3 Million on her Instagram and 269 thousand subscribers on her Youtube channel.Â
Noonoouri
Noonoouri has over 381 thousand followers on Instagram, a contract with KKW Beauty, and sits front row at Dior. She’s living the ‘it-girl’ dream—only she’s not real.
“It takes an enormous amount of time to organise and produce her posts” Joerg Zuber – her creator says. “But when brands like Dior and Versace came knocking, he knew he was onto a good thing.” Here, Noonoouri gave Harper’s Bazaar Arabia an exclusive interview on being a virtual influencer, working with Kim Kardashian West and Maria Grazia Chiuri and her best beauty secrets.
Shudu Gram
Virtually known as the ‘Princess of South Africa’ or a ‘Black Barbie doll’ – Shudu Gram is a computer generated social media personality and model, a ‘Virtual Influencer’. The character is considered the world’s first digital supermodel. She was created in April 2017 by the Fashion Photographer Cameron-James Wilson. Currently Shudu is at 218 thousand followers on Instagram.
Ria Tokyo
Ria is the creation of Aww Inc, Japan’s first virtual human company. Ria loves to model, talk about her life, and share branded posts with a human flare. Since her debut, she has appeared in fashion magazines both in Japan and worldwide. She has 35.5 thousand following on her Instagram and has partnered with brands like Porche Japan.Â
For what it looks like, being a virtual Influencer sounds decent. Virtual Infleuncers are operated and programmed by human beings – but these human beings have the liberty to sit back (quite literally) and think twice before making a public move. They personally do not get peer-pressured into making a stressful decision. Conscious consumption is where we are heading at, – may it be through a human or virtual influencing.
If you enjoyed reading this Op-Ed on Digital Influencers, let us know! We are listening. @itp.live