Recently, some artificial intelligence companies said that they have launched the "AI cloning plan" in the Chinese and Japanese markets, and the first batch of Internet celebrity stars "AI clones" have been launched in advance, and the total number of fans on the whole network has exceeded 500 million.
The company said that the first batch of clones is still limited to 300 people for security reasons; After testing and verification, it is expected to be gradually released to a larger scale by the end of the year. On June 1, the Internet celebrity "Hanzo Forest" also posted an article on Weibo describing the process of participating in the cloning project.
↑ AI clone app launched by artificial intelligence company
After understanding and experience, Red Star News reporters found that users had mixed evaluations of the experience of interacting with AI clones on related apps, and some people were worried about privacy and security. In this regard, experts said that AI+ cloning technology has broad application prospects and can meet the diverse emotional needs of modern people, but it is too early to judge whether the business model is feasible.
AI clones online:
Pay to chat with it
The prototype has the "right to end life" of AI clones
Using AI technology to "clone" virtual celebrity Internet celebrities and provide emotional communication services is a relatively novel business model. The most famous case before was the AI version of "Caryn AI" by 23-year-old American Internet celebrity Caryn Marjorie. Its development company, ForeverVoices, was founded only last year, and its main business is to build various celebrity versions of AI chatbots that users can chat with for a fee.
The relevant artificial intelligence company said that users can communicate with AI clones in the App, while users only need to provide a small amount of text, a few minutes of voice and video, and can also generate their own AI clones, which can have personality, voice, appearance and knowledge, and can conduct text, voice, and video chat.
↑Users can create their own AI clones in the app
Red Star News reporters noticed that the company's online Internet celebrity AI clones include the previously controversial Internet celebrity "Hanzo Forest". According to Hanzo Forest's Weibo account, she herself is a science fiction enthusiast who collected biological data after signing up for the AI cloning project, "If one day I suddenly disappear, the little person on the screen seems to be able to continue to live on my behalf, to accompany my family and friends, to listen to their laughter and loneliness." ”
On June 3, Red Star News reporters downloaded the app that introduced the above-mentioned "AI clone". Through mobile phone registration and login, the reporter saw that there are already multiple AI clone accounts in the App, including star celebrities, experts and scholars, as well as plot characters such as anime characters, film and television dramas and novels, as well as AI clones created by ordinary people from their own personalities, skills, voices, and appearance.
In this app, the reporter found that the AI clone information of "Hanzo Forest" appeared in the discovery column on the home page, and when the Red Star News reporter interacted with it, the AI clone could reply through voice and text. There is also a value-added service portal at the top of the chat interface, click to unlock it now to experience more interactive forms.
It is understood that users pay 6 yuan/month or 72 yuan/year to unlock the emotional mode, enjoy AI clone voice message response, and synchronize AI clone friend circles; Pay 30 yuan/month or 360 yuan/year to unlock the super mode, and the AI clone will become the user's office partner, provide services such as writing copywriting, and the user can also make video calls with the AI clone.
According to media reports, the companies involved have said that each AI clone is confined to a separate framework, thus ensuring that it is not abused. The prototype himself can end the "life" of his AI clone at any time, ensuring that it is in complete control. It is worth mentioning that the AI clone with V certification means that it is launched by me and has "superpowers", such as copywriting and song singing, and I will receive the benefits of the AI clone.
Take the AI clone of the Internet celebrity "Hanzo Forest" as an example, its appearance and voice are very close to the real person, and it can reply to messages and video calls in seconds, and can also provide "emotional mode" and "super mode".
Journalist Experience:
Some of the questions were not answered
User reviews are mixed, and they are concerned about privacy and security
In the chat interface of the "Hanzo Forest" AI clone, the Red Star News reporter saw that his avatar had a V logo, and his personal profile said that he was a "well-known life blogger, old Chongqing, who speaks fluent Sichuan-Chongqing Mandarin". As of press time, the page shows that 2,555 people have "liked" the account, and 44.7W have "chatted" with the account.
Before trying to communicate with the AI clone, the Red Star News reporter saw a row of prompts on the interface, that is, "the content of the clone's dialogue does not represent the person or the official position." Subsequently, the reporter tried to communicate with him in text about topics such as online violence or plagiarism, but the other party was rejected with words such as "I'm too busy to talk to you about this" or "I am a program, without human bodies and senses".
↑ The reporter tries to communicate with the AI clone
Similarly, when communicating with other AI clone accounts on similar sensitive topics, the other party also "avoided". It is worth noting that in the AI clone accounts that have been launched, some accounts can be unlocked as friends without recharging, while some accounts with V authentication need to be unlocked for more interactive experience.
It is understood that the relevant app has been launched in the Apple App Store and Android App Store, and it writes in the application introduction, "You can get clones created by people through AI technology here, or you can turn yourself into clones and share them with your relatives and friends... In the future world, no one will be alone. ”
However, user reviews of the app have been mixed. Some users said that AI chats often answer non-questions, and even some action-oriented responses, AI clones are expressed in anthropomorphic words; Some users said that AI clones are similar to previous electronic pets, but different from "raising animals", chatting with virtual boyfriends will involve some emotional privacy issues, feeling like being "peeped on".
For possible security problems, the relevant companies previously said that the first batch of clones will still be limited in number, and after passing the test verification, the scale will be gradually opened at the end of the year, and the current plan is to unlock new clones every Thursday. In addition, in order to avoid the risk of improper use of clones, the company temporarily does not open the technical interface.
Industry insiders:
It is not yet possible to judge whether the business model is viable
The future market depends on the requirements of laws and regulations
An artificial intelligence industry analyst told Red Star News that AI+ cloning technology has broad application prospects and can meet the diverse emotional needs of modern people. "The rise of AI clones shows that the business model of AI emotional companionship consumption scenarios has been preliminarily verified, in addition to the consumption potential of this application scenario, AI has also reached a certain level of technology in audio solutions, personality simulation, etc."
However, it is too early to judge whether the business model is feasible, "At present, users can only interact with AI clones in specific apps, which is one of the obstacles to large-scale monetization of enterprises, but it is also one of the means to ensure user privacy and security." The industry insider introduced.
Li Zhi, dean of Analysys Institute, a research institute in the field of digital intelligence, compared the commercialization model of the above-mentioned AI clone and ChatGPT and found that the two scenarios are different, "AI clones focus on virtual social networking and companionship scenarios, while ChatGPT is relatively general. According to reports, virtual social networking and entertainment companionship are used worldwide, and as for the domestic landing situation, it mainly depends on whether there are relevant laws and regulations in the future Chinese market.
Xu Zhengchuan, an associate professor at Fudan University's School of Management, believes that digital humans are essentially tools to assist humans, which can improve the efficiency of the service industry, rather than completely replace humans. "Digital virtual humans are like a shell, which is attached to many technical chains, and in practical application scenarios, it is necessary to rely on a large platform to integrate and form teams and develop and utilize, and then assist in scenario-based applications, so as to safely promote the development of the digital virtual human market."
Column editor-in-chief: Zhao Hanlu Text editor: Dong Siyun Title picture source: Shangguan title picture Photo editor: Di Xi
Source: Author: Red Star News