Besides advancing technology and people wanting to be creative, they could be a cheap marketing tool. 

One professor of computer science, Peter Bentley, says CGI influencers can be “completely controlled, and brands can use them to advertise anything without limits. They may also be cheaper."

From a marketing perspective, they can encourage more sales, according to one study:

So, they might not be real, but their influence seems to be.

They have the added advantage of posing with products anywhere their client wants. They can go anywhere in the world without actually having to travel there.

Not only this, they can be adjusted to fit any brand’s image. Programmers can add makeup, colour themes and outfits with a click of a button, all for little cost.

Generally, brands don’t have to worry about the CGI influencer’s politics. They can easily select those who are not political. Those who do not voice their views are unlikely to be ‘cancelled’. And if they do, they potentially have the excuse of AI malfunctions to blame. In contrast, human influencers don’t have this to fall back on. 

This happened recently with an AI rapper, FN Meka. He’s given the appearance of a black male cyborg, and was recently been signed by Capitol Music Group (CMG). 

He has over 500,000 monthly Spotify subscribers and more than one billion views on TikTok. His two non-black creators, Anthony Martini and Brandon Le, have received a lot of backlash in the last week. The robot rapper was signed with a record label, even though one of his songs includes the N-word. 

His creators have not yet commented on the situation or provided an apology.

His words are created by using thousands of data points compiled from video games and social media.

CMG has now dropped him, but before this black activist group Industry Blackout sent them an open letter saying FN Meka was "offensive" and "a direct insult to the Black community and our culture".

They said it was "an amalgamation of gross stereotypes, appropriative mannerisms that derive from Black artists, complete with slurs infused in lyrics".

The song featuring the N-word was a collaboration with human rapper, Gunna. But, "is currently incarcerated for rapping the same type of lyrics this robot mimics. The difference is, your artificial rapper will not be subject to federal charges for such," they said.

The group added: "This digital effigy is a careless abomination and disrespectful to real people who face real consequences in real life."

For example, in 2018, rapper Kendrick Lamar invited a white man on stage to sing along to one of his songs but interrupted him when he sang the N-word lyric.

Also, country star Morgan Wallen, faced a lot of criticism after being caught on video using the racial slur. He describes in an interview that the extent of the backlash led to “very dark times.” 

Language and political views seem to be important factors for human social media stars too. One study found that over half of marketers across the UK, US and Germany would be anxious about working with an influencer who was vocal about social and political causes.

One study found that 59 per cent of black influencers interviewed reported that posting about race negatively impacted them financially. Only 14 per cent of white influencers said they felt this impact.

In May this year, MPs even recommended that the government look into pay standards for influencers as part of a wider investigation.  But, there have been no updates since.

One example is Shudu, who has 237k followers, making her one of the most followed CGI influencers. 

The fictitious fashionista went viral after attracting interest from fashion brands, celebrities and people who initially mistook her for a real person.

In fact, 42 per cent of Gen-Z and millennials have followed an influencer and didn’t know it was a CGI. 

Within two years of her creation, she featured in Vogue and graced the 2019 BAFTA film awards red carpet.

Shudu was created in 2017 by Cameron-James Wilson, the white CEO of The Diigitals, the world’s first CGI modelling agency. 

The Princess of South Africa Barbie doll was supposedly his inspiration when creating her.

Wilson reckoned this type of beauty isn’t seen much in the fashion industry and wanted to change that. *

But, this idea of beauty has been seen through the lens of a white guy before. In the 19th century, Sarah Baartman, a Southern African woman, was marched around freak show attractions, all because she had a large bottom and breasts.

Shudu is getting a similar reaction online, such as users commenting: “She is gorgeous... black women are really it” with tonnes of love heart eyes emojis. 

But, it seems unlikely that Shudu's management will change.

Like Ivaany, The Diigitals could employ a team of black women to control the CGI.

Dr Chico Camargo, lecturer in Computer Science at the University of Exeter, says: “There’s something that lived experience provides you even if your team all have PhD's for example. I think having more perspectives around you means trying to identify, beforehand, the problems that could crop up by you making what is accidentally a caricature.” 

He adds: “You have to remember that there was probably a team thinking, what if we made that character black? 

“I'm sure that there are situations where that's totally fine. But there are so many ways that can go wrong. 

“Some creations can be noble, like black creators wanting black women to look at my black influencer and feel empowered at the same time. 

“I think it all really boils down to money. Is it just some company or somebody profiting from people feeling represented?  This is equivalent to Sainsbury's just saying June is pride month and making pride jaffa cakes. Still jaffa cakes. It's still Sainsbury's. Or whether the money is going to black people themselves?”

In an interview with The New Yorker, Cameron addressed the controversies: "I honestly think that those who have really taken the time to speak to me about my motivations understand that it wasn’t this big scheme to profit off of someone".

Even so, people are picking up on the fact she’s created by a white man. 

Dr Chico Camargo says: “Audiences care about legitimacy. So when audiences learn that it's actually a bunch of white guys, they can feel betrayed because they're buying into an image.” 

In Shudu’s five years of existence, The Diigitals have had many negative comments from news organisations and people on social media.

This is continuing - in Shudu’s most recent Instagram posts, there are comments such as “Honestly disgusting, It’s a white person who created her” and “Wait … A White man created a Black virtual model, and y’all are praising this shyt! Get me off this fckn planet!”

Cameron clarified his creation to Harper's Bazzar, saying: "As a photographer, I work with lots of different people all the time, real people that have inspired her. At the end of the day, it's a way for me to express my creativity—it’s not trying to replace anyone. It's only trying to add to the kind of movement that's out there."

He added: "It's meant to be beautiful art which empowers people. It’s not trying to take away an opportunity from anyone or replace anyone. She’s trying to complement those people."

_{*The Diigitals and Cameron were contacted, but did not respond.}