Meet Lil Miquela. She’s a 19-year-old Brazilian-American model with over 2,5 million Instagram followers. She wears the latest streetwear, collaborates with top fashion brands like Prada and Calvin Klein, and engages her fans with heartfelt captions about social justice. But here’s the catch: Lil Miquela isn’t real. She’s a computer-generated character brought to life by a Los Angeles-based company called Brud.

And she’s not alone. Shudu, often dubbed the world’s first digital supermodel, graces magazine covers and partners with luxury brands like Balmain. Imma, a pink-haired Japanese virtual influencer, is a staple in the fashion and tech industries. These AI influencers don’t just exist—they thrive, raking in millions and reshaping the influencer marketing landscape.

This raises a question we can’t afford to ignore: When influencers are no longer human, what happens to authenticity, creativity, and trust?

The AI Advantage: Flawless and Forever

AI influencers like Lil Miquela have distinct advantages over their human counterparts. They don’t age, they don’t get tired, they never go off-brand and they never sound like idiots. They’re meticulously designed to be relatable yet aspirational, operating 24/7 to engage their audiences without ever slipping up.

For brands, this is a dream come true. AI influencers offer complete creative control. They can be programmed to align perfectly with a campaign’s values, adjust their appearance for different demographics, and respond to trends at lightning speed.

Consider this: According to Statista the global influencer marketing market size has more than tripled since 2019. In 2024, the market was estimated to reach a record of 24 billion US dollars.

With AI influencers offering cost efficiency and reliability, their slice of this pie is growing exponentially.

But what happens when perfection becomes the norm? Are we trading human connection for digital consistency?

One of the most polarizing aspects of AI influencers is the question of transparency.

When you double-tap on a post by Shudu, do you know you’re engaging with a digital creation? Many followers of these AI influencers believe they’re interacting with real people—an illusion that companies are often happy to maintain.

This blurring of lines raises ethical concerns. Should brands be required to disclose when an influencer isn’t human? Are these digital personas stealing opportunities from real creators, especially as companies allocate their budgets toward AI campaigns?

In 2023, Calvin Klein faced backlash for featuring Lil Miquela in a campaign where she shared a kiss with supermodel Bella Hadid.

Critics argued that the campaign commodified identity and blurred the lines of authenticity in an exploitative way. Calvin Klein later apologized, but the controversy sparked a broader debate: Is it ethical to present AI influencers as equals—or even replacements—for human voices?

The Emotional Disconnect: Can We Trust What Isn’t Real?

Authenticity has long been the cornerstone of influencer marketing. Followers gravitate toward influencers who share their struggles, joys, and imperfections. But what happens when those imperfections are replaced with algorithmic precision?

Fans of Imma, the Japanese virtual influencer, might marvel at her perfectly curated feed. Yet, can someone who’s never experienced joy, heartbreak, or growth truly connect on a human level? And if they can’t, are they still influencers—or are they just marketing tools?

The rise of AI influencers isn’t just a technological trend—it’s a societal shift.

We’re moving into a world where human experience is being outsourced to machines. For brands, this offers unparalleled creative possibilities. For society, it raises profound questions about what we value in our interactions and connections.

The influencer economy was built on relatability, the idea that someone like you could rise to fame by being authentic and accessible. But as AI influencers dominate, we must ask: Are we ready to embrace a future where the most influential voices in our culture aren’t even human?

This isn’t a rally against AI influencers.

Technology has always pushed us forward, challenging our ideas of what’s possible. But as we move deeper into this digital frontier, we must demand transparency, ethics, and a commitment to preserving what makes us human.

The question isn’t whether AI can influence us—it already does. The question is, how do we ensure that as technology advances, it serves our humanity, not replaces it?

So, the next time you scroll through your feed and see a flawless smile staring back at you, ask yourself: Who—or what—is behind it? And more importantly, what does that say about the world we’re building? Stay Curious!