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This article originally appeared on Business Insider.
Meta is paying one top creator as much as $5 million over two years for six hours of work in a studio to use their likeness as an AI assistant, according to The Information.
Mark Zuckerberg unveiled the AI assistants during the company’s Connect event last month. While the company has its own AI chatbot similar to ChatGPT, it also introduced 28 new ones with different personalities that use celebrities’ images.
For example, Kendall Jenner’s likeness is used for Billie, who is portrayed as a big sister to give users advice. And Tom Brady plays Bru, a chatbot for debating sports.
Meta has also brought onboard creators like MrBeast, the most-subscribed individual on YouTube, and the TikTok star Charli D’Amelio.
The Information reports that Meta was initially willing to pay more than $1 million to use the stars’ likenesses, but shelled out more for big names. The report doesn’t say which person was paid $5 million, but primarily refers to creators.
Right now, the AI assistants are only text-based but Meta’s announcement video featured clips of the celebrities speaking as their AI counterparts.
In an interview with The Verge, Zuckerberg said there’s a “huge need” for AI versions of celebrities. Although he said that would be “more of a next year thing” due to brand safety concerns, because celebrities would want to make sure their image won’t be used to make problematic statements.
At the same time as its AI assistants, Meta also launched AI stickers. But that feature has come under criticism as users have managed to generate wild images like a child soldier and a lewd image of Justin Trudeau.
Meta did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
