Creators fear that cheap, scalable AI talent might soon come for their paychecks

Norwood is an AI actress and first creation from AI talent studio Xicoia — the brainchild of actor, comedian, technologist Eline Van der Velden. The synthetic starlet has sparked curiosity in holiday marketing and is reportedly in talks with a number of talent agents, according to Deadline.

“These AI creators create unfair competition for real human creators and make it easier for brands to choose a safer alternative, potentially shifting budgets away from actual people who run real businesses,” said Lauren Douglass, a micro-creator and founder of Reverve Agency, a B2B marketing and PR agency.

Brands have shied away from using AI in creativity, but it seems to be gaining traction. Back in June, betting marketplace Kalshi aired an AI-generated ad during the NBA Finals. Then in July, Popeyes released an AI music video featuring human-like characters. Then there’s the so-called AI slop, low quality or fake AI-generated content overwhelming social feeds — think knives cutting glass fruit or dogs driving cars with a Lisa Frank-esque background — that is still managing to rack up views across social media platforms. 

“I don’t think audiences really care about how content is made; they care if it’s entertaining, consistent, and feels human,” said Ella Wills, content creator and head of marketing at WY Partners advisory firm. 

When authenticity sets apart human-generated content

Creators hope human authenticity will keep ad dollars and brand deals rolling in — even as they work through how their own use of generative AI tools can help cut costs in their workflows.

“Utilizing AI to grow creative skills, build out ideas and give folks credible information and educate people is very different than using it to make talking baby videos,” said Nya Étienne, a creator, freelance and digital strategist based in New York City. Étienne, who goes by nya.etienne on social, has more than 28,000 followers on TikTok, where she focuses her content on culture, travel, career and creativity. She added, “I really don’t see it as competition. There’s a big difference between ‘AI slop’ and human content creation.” 

Thus far, marketers have not largely invested in virtual influencers and AI has yet to show up in the fine print of influencer contracts outlining how and when they should be using the tools, according to four influencers Digiday spoke with for this story.

“I talk to my audience every single day, and a huge reason why they trust me and why my brand deals are successful and why I’ve grown in the way that I have is because they know me. I’m a real person,” said one influencer who agreed to speak on background due to her full-time work with tech platforms.