AI Avatars: Pros and Cons for Content Creators

As a social media content creator, I love testing and trying new tools and programs available out there. A few days ago, I decided to dive deep into creating my own avatar using an app on my phone. Honestly, I didn’t have to go very deep because it is an app I have been using for almost three years to add subtitles to my videos. I am talking about Captions app.

This app not only adds subtitles to your videos in many languages, it also can translate, works as a teleprompter when you provide a text, it can record you, edit your raw videos with images, texts and sounds, and much more. Moreover, it allows you to create your own avatar in minutes.

The process to create your avatar using AI is very simple in my opinion, you open the app and go to the AI Twin creation option, follow the instructions, like center your face into an oval shape on the screen, say the letter “O”, etc.

Then the app will record you reading a text from your phone screen, and that’s pretty much it. It creates an avatar of you that can deliver any type of message in the form of a video.

There are a few things to keep in mind: the avatar creation feature is available on the paid version of the app, the app also limit the usage of the AI Twin with extra editing, I guess you have to have a more expensive plan to download a video of your avatar with special effect edits and text.

@vanebritomedia

¡Tengo un avatar! 😂😂😂 lo hice usando @Captions: For Talking Videos y me parece increíble 🫢🫢🫢 aunque siento que tiene que mejorar un poco la coordinación del audio con los labios y los gestos, pero está interesante. Como creadora de contenido este avatar puede ser útil en diferentes escenarios y ocasiones, a ti ¿qué te parece? #avatarai #aiavatar #avatar #captionsapp

♬ Doja Beatㅤ – Majorzin dos beats

The way I have seen this avatar being promoted among influencers or content creators is that it is very helpful for the days when you don’t feel like getting in front of a camera to record something or, if you are swapped with work and activities, you can use your AI twin to do the video or the content you need. However, I think it still needs some work and tweaking to make it seem more human.

In my case, I made my avatar in Spanish, and it is kind of slow. The mouth-to-word coordination is off, and there is no emphasis on certain words or expressions I normally do when I speak. There are no natural breaks neither in the speech, it jumps from one sentence to another one without a proper pause. I was expecting a more advanced AI twin, and I was a bit disappointed.

I find it sad and horrible that companies are promoting and marketing these avatar as a way to make life easier for a small sector of online users. Nothing can replace the warmth, the eye contact, the humour and “realness” of a human being.

I am not against the technology, and I feel that we have to embrace all AI tools and systems we can to improve our lives and workflows. And to certain extend it is fun, but do not come to me selling me this avatar idea that nobody won’t know it is not me.

I posted on Instagram two videos of the both versions of me, my avatar and my real self delivering the same message, and I asked my friends and followers who did it best. All of them agreed the human and real version, meaning, the real me, did it better. So when these apps promote this services as something so convenient and cool, who are they trying to fool?

The moment a human realizes it is an avatar talking, the attention and the respect it lost. Imagine what could cause to brands and businesses that have worked hard for year to get their customers trust to use an avatar in their social media campaigns? Who will buy their products or services, an avatar? I don’t think so.

I suggest we use these avatars to teach the importance of the real human behind a screen or a camera, to learn to differentiate between a real human interaction from a cold avatar one, and to set limits in terms of how honest and real content creation for social media.