.. But They're Not Real

This new social media trend is the most futuristic yet: computer-generated avatars that look, talk and behave like real people. But, asks Hannah-Rose Yee, is this really the future of the influencer industry?

Miquela Sousa has a constellation of freckles dusted right across her nose. Every week she posts a selfie featuring those freckles to 1.2 million followers via her booming Instagram account @Lilmiquela.

She is 19 years old. She is a slashie – model-slash-singer-slash-influencer extraordinaire – with two earwormy singles currently flirting with 1.5 million monthly streams on Spotify. She lives in Los Angeles. She gets hangovers, goes to the gym and loves ice cream and Alexander Wang and the religious experience that was “Beychella”.

“My days vary depending on my mood,” Miquela tells me over email. “I guess you could say I’m a late riser. I usually get out of bed around 11.” On an average day she heads to her music studio or catches up with friends. In the evenings she follows a strict routine: she washes her face (“I’ve been told to never go to bed with a dirty face!”), meditates and switches on her lavender oil diffuser. “Winding down at the end of the day is particularly tough for me,” she explains. “But I’ve found this routine really helps calm my mind.”

So far, so normal. But Miquela is not like you or me. In her words, she’s a robot designed by Brud, an enigmatic Californian company that specialises in “robotics [and] artificial intelligence”, though many believe she is merely a digital avatar. Make no mistake: though she poses in real-world scenarios alongside real people, such as Australian influencer Margaret Zhang, and though she works with brands such as Prada – and sat front row at its February fashion show – she is not a human being.