![Kizuna AI artwork](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Kizuna_AI_artwork.png)
A virtual influencer, at times described as a virtual persona or virtual model, is a computer-generated fictional character that can be used for a variety of marketing-related purposes, but most frequently for
social media marketing
Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms and websites to promote a product or service. Although the terms e-marketing and digital marketing are still dominant in academia, social media marketing is becoming more popular for ...
, in lieu of human "
influencers
An Internet celebrity (also known as a social media influencer, social media personality, internet personality, or simply influencer) is a celebrity who has acquired or developed their fame and notability through the Internet. The rise of social m ...
". Most virtual influencers are designed using computer graphics and motion capture technology to resemble real people in realistic situations. Common derivatives of virtual influencers include
VTubers
A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated in Japan in the mid- ...
, which broadly refer to online entertainers and YouTubers who represent themselves using virtual avatars instead of their physical selves.
History
Virtual influencers are fundamentally synonymous with virtual idols, which originate from Japan's anime and Japanese idol culture that dates back to the 1980s. The first virtual idol created was
Lynn Minmay
Lynn Minmay (Japanese: リン・ミンメイ ''Rin Minmei'', Chinese: 鈴明美 / 林明美 ''Líng Míngměi / Lín Míngměi'') is a fictional anime character from the ''Super Dimension Fortress Macross'' television series and '' Macross: Do Y ...
, a fictional singer and main character of the anime television series ''
Super Dimension Fortress Macross
is an anime television series from 1982. According to story creator Shoji Kawamori, it depicts "a love triangle against the backdrop of great battles" during the first Human-alien war. It is the first part of two franchises: The Super Dime ...
'' (1982) and the
animated film
Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...
adaptation ''
Macross: Do You Remember Love?'' (1984). Minmay's success led to the production of more Japanese virtual idols, such as EVE from the
Japanese cyberpunk anime ''
Megazone 23
is a four-part Japanese cyberpunk original video animation created by Noboru Ishiguro, written by Hiroyuki Hoshiyama and Emu Arii, and directed by Ishiguro, Ichiro Itano, Kenichi Yatagai, and Shinji Aramaki. The series debuted in 1985. It ...
'' (1985), and
Sharon Apple
The following is a list of all the fictional characters within the ''Macross'' anime franchise.
''The Super Dimension Fortress Macross''
Humans
* Hikaru Ichijyo ( Arihiro Hase and Kenji Nojima/Vic Mignogna)The Super Dimension Fortress Macros ...
in
''Macross Plus'' (1994). Virtual idols were not always well received – in 1995,
Japanese talent agency
Horipro
is a large Japanese talent agency.
History
It was founded in 1960 as Hori Productions (ホリプロダクション ''Hori Purodakushon'') and changed to its present name in 1990. Horipro has two locations in the United States: Nashville and ...
created
Kyoko Date is a "virtual idol" associated with Horipro. She made her debut in 1996 as a 3D CG character. Despite her virtual nature, she was treated as talent by Horipro. She never enjoyed great popularity, but after her debut she intermittently continued he ...
, which was inspired by the ''Macross'' franchise and
dating sim
Dating sims, or , are video game subgenre of simulation games with romantic elements.
Dating sims are often dialog-heavy and focus on time management. The player must befriend and carefully build and maintain a relationship with one or more ...
games such as ''
Tokimeki Memorial
is a dating simulation series by Konami. It consists of six main games in addition to many spin-offs. The games are notable in the dating sim genre for being highly nonlinear. Their nickname amongst their fans is the contraction ''TokiMemo''.
Th ...
'' (1994). Date failed to gain commercial success despite drawing headlines for her debut as a CGI idol, largely due to technical limitations leading to issues such as unnatural movements, an issue also known as the
uncanny valley
In aesthetics, the uncanny valley ( ja, 不気味の谷 ''bukimi no tani'') is a hypothesized relation between an object's degree of resemblance to a human being and the emotional response to the object. The concept suggests that humanoid object ...
.
Since their inception, many virtual idols created have achieved continual success, with notable names including the
Vocaloid
is a singing voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project led by Kenmochi Hideki at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, in 2000 and was not originally intended to b ...
singer Hatsune Miku, and the
virtual YouTuber
A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual Avatar (computing), avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated ...
Kizuna AI
is a Japanese virtual YouTuber (VTuber) currently part of Kizuna AI Inc., a subsidiary of digital entertainment company Activ8. From her debut in 2016 until 2021, she was the most subscribed VTuber on Youtube, with more than 4 million subsc ...
. Technological advancements have also enabled production teams to use artificial intelligence and advanced techniques to customize the personalities and behavior of virtual idols.
Benefits
From a branding perspective, virtual influencers are much less likely to be mired in scandals. In China, celebrities caught in bad publicity such as singer
Wang Leehom
Wang Leehom (; born May 17, 1976), sometimes credited as Leehom Wang, is an American singer-songwriter, actor, producer, and film director. Formally trained at Eastman School of Music, Williams College and Berklee College of Music, his music i ...
and entertainer
Kris Wu
Wu Yi Fan (,
; born 6 November 1990), known professionally as Kris Wu, is a Canadian former rapper, singer, actor and model, and convicted serial rapist. He is a former member of South Korean-Chinese boy band Exo and its subgroup Exo-M under SM Ent ...
have heightened the appeal of virtual influencers, since their existence relies entirely on computer-generated imagery, and hence are unlikely to cause any damage to a brand's image by association. Some studies have also suggested that Generation Z consumers have a unique appetite for virtual idols and influencers, since they grew up in the age of the internet.
Notable examples
Virtual bands
*
Gorillaz
Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar), Noodle (guitar, ...
- A virtual band formed in 1998.
*
K/DA
K/DA is a virtual K-pop girl group consisting of four themed versions of ''League of Legends'' characters Ahri, Akali, Evelynn and Kai'Sa. (G)I-dle members Miyeon and Soyeon as well as American singers Madison Beer and Jaira Burns provide the ...
- A virtual K-pop girl group created as part of the ''League of Legends'' video game franchise.
*
Pentakill
Pentakill is a virtual heavy metal band associated with the ''League of Legends'' universe. Their music is primarily composed and performed by Riot Games' in-house music team but features cameos by various renowned metal musicians. Their second ...
- A virtual heavy metal band created as part of the ''League of Legends'' video game franchise.
*
Studio Killers
Studio Killers is a Finnish–Danish–British electropop virtual band made up of four animated characters: vocalist and designer Chubby Cherry (or simply Cherry), keyboardist Goldie Foxx, DJ Dyna Mink, and manager Bipolar Bear.
History
2011 ...
- A Finnish-Danish-British virtual band formed in 2011.
Vocaloids
*
Hatsune Miku
, also called Miku Hatsune, and officially code-named CV01, is a Vocaloid software voicebank developed by Crypton Future Media and its official moe anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mascot character, a 16-year-old girl with long, turquoise bu ...
(modeled after
Saki Fujita
is a Japanese voice actress from Tokyo. She sang the ending theme to the anime '' Tokimeki Memorial Only Love'', "Kiseki no Kakera", (奇跡のかけら) along with Yuki Makishima and Yukako Yoshikawa as well as the opening songs for '' Workin ...
)
*
Kagamine Rin/Len
, officially code-named CV02, are a pair of Vocaloid software developed by Crypton Future Media, headquartered in Sapporo, Japan. Their official ''moe'' anthropomorphism consists of a pair of twin vocals, a boy and a girl, respectively named Le ...
(modeled after
Asami Shimoda
is a Japanese actress and voice actress. Her best known roles include the Futami twins in ''The Idolmaster'', and Kagamine Rin and Len in the Vocaloid Crypton Future Media's Character Vocal Series. In the adult game ''Tayutama'', she used the ...
)
*
Megurine Luka
, codenamed "CV03", is a Vocaloid software developed by Crypton Future Media, headquartered in Sapporo, Japan. Its official ''moe'' anthropomorphism is a 20-year-old woman. She uses Yamaha Corporation's Vocaloid 2 and Vocaloid 4 singing synthesiz ...
(modeled after
Yū Asakawa
is a Japanese voice actress from Tokyo, Japan. She also provides the voice samples for Crypton Future Media's Vocaloid character, Megurine Luka. Asakawa is currently a freelance voice actress and was previously attached to Arts Vision (as of Oct ...
)
*
Meiko (modeled after Meiko Haigō)
*
Kaito
Kaito (written: 海斗, 開士, 魁斗, 海翔, 海人, 快斗, 凱斗 or 海都) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese footballer
*, Japanese footballer
* Baruto Kaito (born 1984, surname Baruto), ...
(modeled after Naoto Fūga)
VTubers
*
Kano
Kano may refer to:
Places
*Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria
* Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State
**Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries
**Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...
*
Kizuna AI
is a Japanese virtual YouTuber (VTuber) currently part of Kizuna AI Inc., a subsidiary of digital entertainment company Activ8. From her debut in 2016 until 2021, she was the most subscribed VTuber on Youtube, with more than 4 million subsc ...
*
VShojo
VShojo (officially VShojo, Inc.) is a VTuber company based in the United States. VShojo bills itself as a "talent first" VTuber agency, oriented towards providing resources (such as models, merchandising, and advertisement opportunities) to ...
**
Ironmouse
Ironmouse is a Puerto Rican-American VTuber and live streamer. Active since 2017, she is a founding member of the VTuber group VShojo launched in 2020. With over one million followers on Twitch, she is the most-followed English language VTuber o ...
**
Projekt Melody
Projekt Melody, or Melody ( ja, メロディー) for short, is a 3D anime-styled live streamer, or VTuber. She first appeared when her Twitter account opened in July 2019, and she has live streamed on Chaturbate and Twitch since early 2020. ...
*
Hololive
is a virtual YouTuber agency owned by Japanese tech entertainment company Cover Corporation. In addition to acting as a multi-channel network, Hololive Production also handles merchandising especially in music production and concert organizati ...
**
Gawr Gura
is a virtual YouTuber affiliated with Hololive English. She is a member of Hololive English - Myth (stylized as HoloMyth), alongside , , , and . She debuted on September 13, 2020, and has since become the most subscribed virtual YouTuber, ama ...
**
Hoshimachi Suisei
is a Japanese virtual YouTuber. She began posting videos as an independent creator in March 2018. In May 2019, she became affiliated with Hololive Production through their newly created music label, INoNaKa Music, before joining the agency's ma ...
**
Natsuiro Matsuri
Other examples
*
Ami Yamato
Ami Yamato (born October 26 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese virtual YouTuber, virtual YouTube vlogger. In her videos, she vlogs from the perspective of a 3D animation, 3D-animated character who does not seem to realize that she is animated. She is ...
*
Crazy Frog
Crazy Frog (originally known as The Annoying Thing) is a Swedish CGI-animated character and Eurodance musician created in 2003 by actor and playwright Erik Wernquist. Marketed by the ringtone provider Jamba!, the character was originally creat ...
*
FN Meka
*
IA
*
Kuki AI
*
Kyra
*
Miquela
*
Neuro-sama
*
Shudu Gram
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. Her a ...
See also
*
Avatar (computing)
In computing, an avatar is a graphical representation of a user or the user's character or persona. Avatars can be two-dimensional icons in Internet forums and other online communities, where they are also known as profile pictures, userpics, ...
*
CGI
*
Content creation
Content creation is the contribution of information to any Content (media), media and most especially to digital content, digital media for an end-user/audience in specific contexts. Content is "something that is to be expressed through some Medi ...
*
Internet celebrity
An Internet celebrity (also known as a social media influencer, social media personality, internet personality, or simply influencer) is a celebrity who has acquired or developed their fame and notability through the Internet. The rise of social ...
*
Uncanny valley
In aesthetics, the uncanny valley ( ja, 不気味の谷 ''bukimi no tani'') is a hypothesized relation between an object's degree of resemblance to a human being and the emotional response to the object. The concept suggests that humanoid object ...
*
Virtual actor
A virtual human, virtual persona, or digital clone is the creation or re-creation of a human being in image and voice using computer-generated imagery and sound, that is often indistinguishable from the real actor.
The idea of a virtual actor w ...
*
Virtual humans
Virtual humans (or digital humans) are simulations of human beings on computers. The research domain is concerned with their representation, movement and behavior. There is a wide range of applications: simulation, games, film and TV productions, ...
References
{{reflist
Internet celebrities
Internet culture
Social media