Modified on May 13, 2023 at 03:25 GMT
Social media star Caryn Marjorie has created a digital copy of herself called CarynAI, a chatbot pretending to be a “virtual girlfriend”. The influencer launched the chatbot for beta testing on Tuesday, May 2, 2023 and charged users $1 per minute for the service.
The AI-powered doppelganger is available for all kinds of virtual interactions, from casual talk and making plans to participating in NSFW discussions. According to Fortune, CarynAI generated a whopping $71,610 in sales in one week, with almost all of its users being men. The magazine cited an income statement from Marjorie’s chief executive.
I’ve uploaded over 2,000 hours of my content, voice and personality to become the first creator turned into an AI. Now millions of people can talk to me at the exact same time #carynai #ai
Caryn aka @cutiecaryn was born in Omaha, Nebraska in January 2000 and later moved to Los Angeles, California. The 23-year-old first rose to fame in 2016 on social media platform Snapchat. Her fan base grew after she frequently interacted with her fans through YouNow. By 2018, she was expanding on YouTube, where she frequently shared comedic videos, daily vlogs, and stories.
She currently has a following of 1.8 million subscribers on Snapchat and is managed by Ishan Goel of Goel Strategies.
Caryn Marjorie’s virtual persona was developed by AI company Forever Voices
CarynAI provides real-time conversations via messaging that can be accessed anywhere, anytime.
Forever Voices claims to have end-to-end encryption, so chat remains private and secure. According to CarynAI’s website, the company spent over 2000 hours “transforming Caryn’s speech and personality into an immersive AI experience” to create a flawless clone (a deepfake) of the influencer.
The description of the AI states:
“With her unique voice, captivating personality, and distinctive demeanor, CarynAI offers you a dynamic, one-of-a-kind interaction that feels like you’re speaking directly to Caryn herself.”
According to Fortune, several of the 23-year-old influencer’s videos, which have since been deleted from her YouTube channel, were overlaid with “OpenAI’s GPT-4 API technology.” OpenAI is an artificial intelligence research lab that developed ChatGPT.
I plan to invest half of my profits back into CarynAI and the other half into a non-profit organization that makes a real difference
In her interview with Fortune, Caryn Marjorie explained that if just 20,000 of her 1.8 million followers on Snapchat signed up for the service, she could make as much as $5 million a month. She claimed that the chatbot would offer the experience of having a “real” partner. She remarked:
“Whether you need someone to comfort you, love you, or just want to rant about something that happened at school or work, CarynAI is always there for you.”
When asked about the idea of authenticity, Caryn Marjorie stated that the virtual double could never replace the real person. However, she added that it would be “an expansion of her consciousness” accessible to anyone as she could speak in multiple languages.
Caryn Marjorie comments on questions about authenticity (Picture via Twitter/ @cutiecaryn. @JamesTheHippie)
Due to the ease with which the AI chatbot can be abused, Forever Voice CEO John Meyer stated that they plan to appoint a chief ethics officer to deal with such matters.
Discussing her future plans, the 23-year-old social media star told Fortune:
“I want CarynAI to survive me and impact generations beyond today’s world.”
While Caryn Marjorie claims she’s the first creator to be turned into an AI, it sure seems like a trend that will catch on very soon.