AI Influencers Are Targeting Your Kids: What Parents Need to Know

If you’re like me and are skeptical of AI and find most influencers cringeworthy, buckle up. AI influencers are officially a thing, and these synthetic salespeople are flooding your kid’s feed, likely without them realizing it. 

AI influencers present risks to kids beyond generic exposure to AI slop. They also perpetuate unrealistic beauty and lifestyle standards and encourage parasocial relationships with amoral robots. If it’s not already obvious, I am not a fan of AI influencers. Here’s what I want you to know so you can protect your child. 

What are AI influencers?

AI influencers are computer-generated characters designed to function like human influencers. The individuals, agencies, and brands behind AI influencers maintain a social media presence for the entity in order to promote products, brands, lifestyles, or ideas. 

AI influencers range from cartoonish and easy to spot, like Lu do Magalu, to naturalistic and harder to identify, like Aitana Lopez. They market fashion, makeup, technology, and more, and have deals with brands like Prada, Puma, and Samsung.

Why are AI influencers a risk for kids?

Besides the general ick factor, AI influencers present real risks for kids. For example: 

Unrealistic beauty and lifestyle standards

Human influencers are often criticized for creating unattainable standards. For AI influencers, who are almost universally young, fit, and conventionally attractive, that risk is magnified. When kids are persistently exposed to AI influencers, they may become preoccupied with their appearance and go to extreme lengths to emulate these artificial creators. 

No moral compass, no accountability

Unlike their mortal counterparts, AI influencers don’t have a moral compass and don’t risk the same real-life backlash. This lack of integrity and accountability means AI influencers may post content or interact with kids who follow them in harmful and manipulative ways. 

Hidden creators, hidden agendas

Unless the person or brand behind an AI influencer is transparent, it’s impossible to know who’s behind the account. This murkiness makes it difficult to discern intentions. Your child could be following an AI influencer run by a nefarious person who intends them harm, wrapped up in a perfectly polished package.

Parasocial relationships

Parasocial relationships are one-sided bonds that can develop when a person invests themselves in someone who doesn’t know they exist, like an influencer. Parasocial relationships are normal and potentially positive. But they can also lead to compulsions, delusions, and problems with real-world relationships. 

How can you tell if an influencer is AI?

Here are some clues to help you spot AI influencers: 

• Check for disclosure. Social media companies have varying policies about requiring disclosure of AI-generated content. Even then, many AI influencers do their best to toe the line while obscuring the truth by using cheeky and vague labels like “virtual soul” or “LA robot,” or burying the disclosure in a block of hashtags. Still, the first line of defense is to look at a post or account bio for clues. 
• Look for visual inconsistencies. While it’s rapidly improving, generative AI still struggles with these key elements: unnatural lighting patterns that don’t match the surroundings, flaws or blurring in more complex areas of the body such as hair and hands, lack of symmetry with accessories, and inconsistent eye reflection. 
• Do a gut check. There’s a concept known as the “uncanny valley” in which robots, animations, or AI-generated material looks almost human, but there’s just something off or creepy about it that’s hard to definitively identify. This leads to an unsettled feeling. If an influencer seems too good to be true, or just “off,” trust your gut. 

How do I talk to my kids about AI influencers?

The time has come to add AI influencers to your conversations about digital literacy with your child. Here’s how:

• Teach them to assume fake first. Yes, it’s cynical, but it’s better to assume an account is AI until you have evidence otherwise. 
• Help them learn to identify AI content. Look at examples of known AI influencers together and try to spot the tells. (New addition to family game night?)
• Praise imperfection. The optimistic side of me hopes that human influencers will start making less curated and filtered posts in an attempt to stand out against the robots. Only time will tell, but for now, encourage your child to follow creators who are not afraid to show their imperfections. 
• Keep an eye on what accounts they follow and how they engage with them. It’s a personal choice whether you try to restrict your child from following AI influencers. But at bare minimum, you should keep an eye on how they engage with creators online, whether they be human or otherwise. BrightCanary’s monitoring tools can help you keep tabs. 

In short

AI influencers push unrealistic standards, have no moral compass or accountability, and obscure who's really in charge. Protect your child by teaching them about the risks of AI influencers and how to spot them. 

Learn more about how BrightCanary can help you monitor what your child sees on social media.

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