Guess campaign's AI 'model' raises questions about beauty standards

Vivi is the face of Californian clothing company Guess’ latest global campaign. She is young, beautiful, and in the pages of the August edition of fashion bible, Vogue, and Harper’s Bazaar.

But Vivi’s not a real person. She was created by London-based AI marketing agency, Seraphinne Vallora.

Its co-founder, Valentina Gonzalez, says that they set out aiming to discover the DNA of the companies they work with as the type of model they have is a big part of who the brand is.

“So Vivi's a representation of what Guess has usually done in the past. She is a beautiful woman. She looks like a goddess. She is feminine, sensual."

But Vivi is creating a stir in the industry.

The controversial campaign raises question about what it means for real people - particularly young girls – who already face unrealistic beauty standards.

Vivi is joined on the campaign by Anastasia - another AI-generated model from Seraphinne Vallora.

They are both slim, glamorous, and conventionally beautiful, but the agency says their AI software can produce models of any ethnicity, size, or weight.

However, they admit they receive the most traction on their social media on models who conform to traditional beauty standards.

Andreea Petrescu, also a co-founder of the agency, says they have identified a real problem in the market.

“It's really difficult to create marketing campaigns sometimes, especially if it's on location and especially if you need a variety of models. So companies do have a need to create more content fast."

The two women claim that, in addition, AI can reduce campaign costs for labels, cutting the need for expensive location shoots.

Simon Chambers, the director of Storm Management, a London modelling agency which first signed supermodel Kate Moss says he appreciates there may be some benefits to AI.

He says he can see how it can be a useful tool for pre-planning shoots or reducing costs at the lower end, but he thinks at the top, there can be no substitute for the real thing.

Although creative teams work together to produce AI campaigns, he believes the lack of spontaneity cannot be good for the creative process.

"Shoots often have spontaneous moments of creativity. The interaction between the photographer, the stylist, the art director, the hair, the makeup, the model, all combine, and it's often a zeitgeist thing. It's people,” he says.

Fashion, he adds, is about expression.

“It's the expression of mood, emotion, how people are seeing the world, how they want to be seen and understood, and all that can combine in a creative atmosphere to produce something really stunning."

Chambers, who has also signed the likes of Cara Delevingne, adds that people do not just want pixels on a screen, they want the back story too.

“What they have for breakfast, where they go, you know, do they go to the movies? Do they have picnics with their friends? I think I'd rather stick to real people, yeah," he says.

Seraphinne Vallora says it understands the need for drama, gossip, and a social media presence for its talent.

Frighteningly for some, the company is considering giving Vivi exactly the sort of AI lifestyle that her fans can follow.