Are "avastars" true influencers or just creepy? | The Tylt

Miquela was created by Burd, a transmedia studio aimed at creating  "story worlds" where technology, entertainment and marginalized voices meet. If Brud's unconventional website is any indication, this company is nothing if not innovative, and Miquela is sure to be the first of many avastars. As Highsnobiety's Aleks Eror puts it: 

 In an era of fake news, AI, Russian troll farms, catfishing, and deceptive selfies, Miquela highlights how technology is estranging us from reality.

Miquela is a computer generated image–or, perhaps less drastically, a computer modified image–that’s superimposed into Instagram snaps taken out in the real world.

Miquela's Instagram is filled with the typical "influencer" shots that you might find elsewhere. She's in the fashion district of L.A., casually eating ice cream and looking stunning doing it, taking strange-angle selfies and traveling the world. People both love to love her and love to hate her, again, just like every other celebrity on Instagram. 

She makes us question what is real and examine its parameters, unlike human influencers who quietly contribute to our hyperreality with deceptive Instagram snaps that sneak beyond the reaches of our sensory radar.

Regardless of Miquela's meta nature, some people just can't get past the creepy, computer-generated look to virtual celebrities. The stars looks so close to real that looking at them makes some uncomfortable; you know that they aren't real, but you still wonder, "Maybe?"

Especially because all of these avastars are SO extremely beautiful, it makes people want to believe they are human, which can be very unsettling. They have their own style, dreams, daily routines and opinions. Some people just don't want to buy into even more fake culture. 

According to Tech Crunch, everyone should get used to these virtual celebrities. Brud and similar companies are seeing plenty of interest from investors: 

The investors backing these companies say it’s the rise of a new kind of studio system—one that’s independent of the personalities and scandals that have defined a generation of Vine, YouTube and Instagram stars—and it’s attracting serious venture dollars.

They know that a virtual star is a safer choice than a real one, which is more prone to making mistakes. 

Some aren't ready to release the future of entertainment to computers just yet. Real celebrities might put on just as many airs on Instagram by doctoring photos, but at least they are human. As Miquela says herself in an interview: 

It’s been disheartening to watch misinformation and memes warp our democracy, but I think that speaks to the power of 'virtual.'

Which is exactly why virtual celebrities are the trend that needs to die.