Is a Virtual Influencer Right for Your Brand?

It looked like a typical social media car ad: A young model leaned into the frame, with a red BMW parked in the desert behind her. However, the woman in the 2023 picture wasn’t real. She was the computer-generated avatar known as Lil Miquela, a fictional character and singer created in 2016 who has since become a social media influencer.

As artificial intelligence gains traction, its use has expanded to include virtual influencers for brands. These influencers walk, talk and act like real people, but they don’t exist outside the digital realm. Instead, they are characters created through sophisticated computer-generated imagery, motion capture and AI technology.