Finalists of the Miss IA contest have a few things in common – a beautiful face, nearly flawless skin and an attractive figure, sometimes even too slim, along with with advocacy of multiple social causes
Miss IA is the world’s first beauty pageant for virtual influencers developed using artificial intelligence.
The judges have selected the 10 finalists of the competition, whose winner is to be announced this week, on parameters such as their appearance and realism, the good use of artificial intelligence, and their influence on social networks.
More than 1,500 participants registered for the first edition of this contest that was launched in April by Fanvue, a content platform based on artificial intelligence, according to the organization.
One of the finalists is Turkey’s Seren Ay, who has more than 20,000 followers on Instagram, where her creators show her traveling in Istanbul, Paris and Taiwan, or at the controls of an aircraft.
“The standard of her content is incredibly high and we loved the originality and imagination behind each piece. Showcasing herself in interesting scenarios is really interesting and shows how AI creators can seamlessly place women in traditionally male dominated roles and arenas,” the jury said about Ay.
The involvement of AI in the contest goes to the extent that its panel of judges includes two of the most popular virtual influencers: Aitana Lopez and Emily Pellegrini, who have more than half a million followers on social networks.
Ay, however, was not developed specifically to compete in the pageant but was created in December 2023 to promote a jewelry brand.
“We wanted to work with an influencer to create visibility for our jewelry brand, Sirena Arte, but due to costs and various extravagant demands, we looked for other solutions. The idea of creating our own influencer emerged,” Furkan Sahin, in charge of the project, explained to EFE.
“While creating the character, we analyzed the type of content produced by popular female influencers in Turkey using artificial intelligence and created a character accordingly,” he added.
Meanwhile, in India, the digital marketing agency Digimozo created Zara Shatavari to advertise one of its nutrition products.
“We wanted a fresh face that could advocate a healthy lifestyle. AI played a crucial role in developing Zara’s look and personality. We used AI to create a relatable and engaging personality that aligns with our brand values. Additionally, AI helped us generate her physical appearance,” the company’s co-founder Rahul Chowdhry told EFE.
However, despite the endless possibilities that artificial intelligence provides, Shatavari’s immaculate complexion, slim figure and attractiveness seem to be governed by the same beauty standards as the other participants.
«Our goal was to create a Bollywood-style celebrity,» explained Choudhry, who admitted that her creation follows the patterns of conventional beauty and has received comments that Shatavari was «too thin».
It is a similar story with the rest of the finalists, who all project an image of perfection that is not in line with the supposed everyday life that they try to project in their personalities.
Shatavari focuses on social causes, gaining her points in the competition where the issue is prioritized by the jury in its assessments.
The Indian AI model claims to be a warrior in the fight against depression and passionate about fashion and travel. She combines this with her blog in which she publishes articles on topics such as hormonal imbalance, as well as stress and anxiety.
“Her role is to inspire and educate others on health and wellness, leveraging her celebrity appeal to make a positive impact,” said Choudhry, who produces these posts with the help of ChatGPT, another artificial intelligence tool.
Meanwhile, other contestants such as the Romanian Aiyana Rainbow stands as an advocate of the LGTBI movement, and the French Anne Kerdi is an ambassador for Oceanopolis, a fund for the conservation and preservation of the oceans.
How well these initiatives perform could decide the winner of Miss AI, who will receive a prize of $13,000 and PR support.
