Lucy was approached with the opportunity to become an AI model just like the celebrities she’d seen on her social media feed. But the easy money soon spiralled into a living nightmare
When Lucy* was approached with a message on Instagram about becoming an AI model, she was immediately intrigued. The 23-year-old had noticed stars like Kendall Jenner creating their own AI avatars and fancied giving it a whirl.
The AI start-up behind the offer dangled a carrot of £1,500, which to Lucy seemed like easy money and a fascinating venture – so she inked the deal without further counsel.
However, Lucy didn’t grasp that she had effectively relinquished her rights over her image for life in paid adverts. Now bound by a legal agreement, she’s faced with the possibility of her likeness being hawked to endorse products or causes unbeknownst to her. It comes after a warning everyone using Android must restart their phones now as ‘critical’ warning issued.
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“It was just an initial DM reach out from a scout wanting to use me for an AI model,” Lucy recounted to the Manchester Evening News. “The money is mostly what attracted me. I guess I also found it interesting the whole concept of being an AI model as I’ve seen celebrities do the same thing in the past on social media so I thought it would be fun to try it myself too.”
Lucy concedes she signed a complex contract that she now recognises she didn’t fully comprehend – a pact that required her to provide numerous video clips to develop her AI model, reports the Manchester Evening News.
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“The contract in a nutshell says I can’t accept money for brand endorsements,” she said. “So if I ever wanted to be a user generated content creator, I can’t do that – something I realised actually when we filmed the documentary.”
She has become the focus of a fresh documentary shot in and around Manchester examining the growing phenomenon of AI models within the user generated content sector. The 20-minute film, created by documentary maker and producer Sam Tullen, delves into the emergence of AI creators.
“I remember being on an AI website and just seeing pages upon pages of faces, each capable of reading any script you fed into the site,” Sam told the M.E.N. “I was interested to try it out and was mind blown.
“I researched further into it and learned that a lot of the AI models on offer across various websites are actually modelled using real people. From that moment, I knew I had to bring attention to it.”
He explained that whilst Lucy’s predicament isn’t widespread, it ‘could be very soon’. “I think some people are scared that AI companies will take their image from the web without permission anyway so I can see why some may be more accepting of lowball offers. “Lucy now faces the issue of her face being used to say or promote things without her knowledge.”
He hopes his documentary ‘I sold my face to AI for £1,500’ will help highlight awareness surrounding these significant technological developments, and the dangers they might present. “We wanted to release this programme online so it can reach global audiences in the hopes it would spark discussion about this issue,” she stated.
“With the technology advancing faster than the laws surrounding it, there does need to be more awareness, and I hope this doc contributes in some way to that conversation.”
I sold my face to AI for £1,500 is available to watch on the @docodocumentaries YouTube channel now.
*Names have been changed to protect anonymity.
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