The creator economy is rapidly evolving, driven by the intersection of technology and creativity. As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to advance, its influence on this sector is becoming increasingly profound. From virtual influencers to content repurposing tools, AI is reshaping how creators produce, distribute, and monetize content. However, while AI offers tremendous potential, it also raises important ethical questions and challenges.
Virtual Influencers and the Future of Content Creation
One of the most intriguing developments is the rise of virtual influencers. Jordi van den Bussche, also known as Kwebbelkop, is a prominent advocate of this trend. Having been a content creator for over a decade, Jordi sees virtual influencers as the future of the industry. He explains, “I see a future where almost every influencer is a virtual influencer. I’ve been saying this for years, and now it’s slowly starting to happen. This is the future; this is where we’re going to go.”
Jordi’s investment in virtual influencers stems from the challenges he faced as a traditional content creator. He describes the “key man problem,” where the success of a creator’s business is heavily reliant on their personal involvement. If the creator takes a break or steps back, the entire business can suffer. To mitigate this risk, Jordi developed Bloo, a virtual influencer that mimics his own persona but operates independently of him. “Bloo has a step-by-step process on the back end and also has an actor, but it is a virtual person,” Jordi explains. “Every element of the process is modular, so you can replace anyone and everything, and it will live on and breathe on forever.”
The potential of virtual influencers is vast. They can create content at scale, never suffer from burnout, and maintain consistent branding. However, this innovation also brings ethical concerns. As Jordi notes, “People say, ‘Oh, but it’s fake. You will never be able to convey real personality and have people create a connection.’ It’s hard, but it’s possible.” The challenge lies in creating authentic connections between virtual influencers and their audiences, something that traditional influencers naturally possess.
AI Tools Enhancing Creator Efficiency
Beyond virtual influencers, AI is also transforming the way content is produced and repurposed. Conor Eliot, from Opus Clip, highlights the role of AI as an efficiency tool in the creator economy. “We’re not trying to replace any aspect of the human creative process. We’re just trying to make life a lot easier for people to take care of the boring stuff so that they can go out and do the exciting, fun stuff,” Conor explains.
Opus Clip is a generative AI tool that repurposes long-form content into multiple short-form videos with just one click. This capability is particularly valuable for creators who need to maintain a presence across various platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. The tool analyzes the content to identify the most engaging moments and automatically generates clips optimized for social media. Conor emphasizes that AI’s role is to augment, not replace, human creativity. “AI is just another tool in your toolkit. It’s not designed to replace human creativity.”
The democratization of content creation through AI tools like Opus Clip lowers barriers to entry, allowing more people to become creators. However, Conor acknowledges the potential downside: the oversaturation of AI-generated content. “I know there’s going to be a flood of AI-generated content out there… but I think people will quickly realize that they don’t really like it. The value of content is the community and connection that it brings with it.”
AI in Large-Scale Content Production
For larger content production companies, AI is becoming an integral part of their operations. Victor Potrel from TheSoul Publishing, a global content creation company, discusses how they have integrated AI into their production processes. “We’ve been building this platform for a long time that helps us go from one stage to another and stay focused. This has just been a natural evolution to add some modules which support the production and distribution process,” Victor explains.
TheSoul Publishing uses AI to generate thumbnails, create backgrounds for animations, and streamline other aspects of content creation. By training their AI tools on years of internal data, they have optimized these processes to align with their brand’s style and standards. However, Victor also recognizes the limitations of AI in content production. “When I look at pure AI video production… I think it will definitely continue to grow… but we’re not there yet where the quality will be good enough to be fully replaced.”
Victor also sees AI as a tool to enhance human creativity rather than replace it. He believes that while AI can make content creation more efficient, viewers still crave authentic, human-generated content. “Viewers always want to know if they’re watching AI content or not… not everyone is willing to just watch AI content without knowing it or instead of watching content that maybe has been supported with AI.”
Leveraging AI for Smarter Content Decisions
AI’s potential to optimize content creation extends beyond efficiency to the strategic level, where it can influence key decisions about what content to create and how to distribute it. Jeremy Barnett, CEO of RAD AI, highlights the importance of understanding audience behavior and preferences through AI. “We’ve created an artificial intelligence that understands the language of the internet… and by taking the audience insights portion first, we’re able to make better creator and influencer recommendations,” Jeremy explains.
RAD AI’s approach involves analyzing vast datasets from platforms like Reddit, Google, and social media channels to gauge real-time sentiments and trends. This data-driven approach helps brands make more informed decisions about which creators to partner with and what content will resonate with their target audience. Jeremy notes that AI’s ability to process and interpret this information can prevent bias and outdated assumptions from influencing marketing strategies. “If you don’t have an intimate understanding of who your customer is and what mobilizes them to take action… you’re sometimes either making dated recommendations or you’re infusing bias.”
However, Jeremy also cautions about the ethical considerations involved in using AI to influence content decisions. He points out the potential risks of AI-driven campaigns, such as the spread of misinformation or the unintentional reinforcement of stereotypes. “The idea with Reddit is we are getting a look under the hood of the way the world feels on any given topic… but it also helps identify the things sometimes you shouldn’t do,” Jeremy adds, highlighting the dual nature of AI’s insights.
The Ethical Considerations of AI in Content Creation
The rise of AI in the creator economy brings with it significant ethical considerations. As AI tools become more sophisticated, the line between authentic and AI-generated content can blur, raising questions about transparency and trust. Jeremy Barnett emphasizes the importance of using AI responsibly to avoid these pitfalls. “There are distinctly different KPIs associated with whether it’s a brand direct or we’re working with the agency… but at the end of the day, we’re ultimately working with customers that either want to identify or validate who their customer is and the relationship between those audience insights and the campaign objective.”
AI’s impact on the creator economy is undeniable. It offers creators new tools to enhance their content, reach wider audiences, and operate more efficiently. Virtual influencers like Bloo represent a new frontier in content creation, while tools like Opus Clip empower creators to do more with less. However, the rise of AI also brings ethical challenges that the industry will need to address.
Excerpts in this article taken from the Business of Creators podcast.
