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Meta is reportedly planning to launch AI chatbots featuring voices from a range of celebrities, including John Cena, Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key, Kristen Bell, and Dame Judi Dench.
This development is significant for the niche audience of Denchbench fans who may be looking for a compelling reason to explore AI voice chatbots.
However, the rationale behind Meta’s renewed focus on celebrity collaborations may raise eyebrows for many.
Approximately one year ago, Meta unveiled a different array of celebrity AI assistants within Messenger, showcasing notable personalities like Kendall Jenner, Mr. Beast, Tom Brady, and Snoop Dogg. Curiously, these chatbots represented the celebrities visually but employed fictional names; for instance, users interacted with a character named “Billie,” modeled after Kendall Jenner, who offered advice reminiscent of a caring sibling.
It’s reported that Meta invested up to $5 million over two years for this project, which required just six hours of studio recordings. However, the engagement with these celebrity avatars fell short, leading to their discontinuation by August, merely months after their debut.
This leads to the question: Why is Meta revisiting the celebrity AI strategy if the previous attempt was deemed unsuccessful?
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One possibility is that the earlier chatbots were not an outright failure. While they may not have retained users’ interest, perhaps they succeeded in encouraging a trial run of AI chatbots among a wider audience through their celebrity appeal.
Alternatively, Meta’s approach to celebrity could be somewhat unconventional. It’s worth noting that unlike brands such as Doritos that leverage celebrities for promotional campaigns, Meta has woven itself into the fabric of celebrity culture through platforms like Instagram. This interdependence raises questions about how the two entities can coexist.
Following the launch of Meta’s Threads in the summer of 2023, a notable shift occurred as numerous high-profile celebrities, who had largely abandoned Twitter, began joining Threads, drawing substantial followings. However, many quickly fell silent, potentially realizing that the text-focused format did not align with their usual engagement styles. To counter this, Meta later introduced a financial incentive program aimed at encouraging reality stars to create content on Threads.
Despite an initial post from Taylor Swift promoting her new album, her continued absence from the platform suggested that it wasn’t a favorite, even with enthusiastic backing from Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg.
Additionally, there have been several missteps in Meta’s attempts to intertwine celebrities with its brand. For instance, in 2019, high-profile endorsements from Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez for the Facebook Portal failed to resonate, leading to the product’s discontinuation by late 2022.
The Role of Celebrities in Meta’s Future
Thus, Meta’s strategy of incorporating celebrity voices into its AI offerings feels somewhat peculiar. Historically, the quality and user-friendly nature of Meta’s products have made them appealing without the need for celebrity endorsements, as even celebrities enjoy using them naturally.
Nevertheless, the reunion of the cast from “Modern Family” for a WhatsApp advertisement indicates that Meta is likely targeting everyday users who might not typically engage with AI or WhatsApp. The choice of celebrity voices for the AI assistants, like Judi Dench, also reflects a departure from trendy Gen Z influencers.
On a positive note, at least Meta appears to have secured actual celebrities rather than utilizing lookalikes, a misstep some competitors have made.
There’s a chance that Meta believes associating well-known personalities with AI technology might alleviate some of the apprehension surrounding its use. The ability of AI to mimic celebrity voices can provoke unease, creating a complex dynamic.
Ultimately, it’s possible that these decisions stem from a combination of executive intuition and marketing analytics, a process that likely involved numerous brainstorming sessions.
I entertain a personal theory: Yann LeCun may have a soft spot for “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” and pushed for an appearance from Dame Judi Dench.
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