AI-powered digital avatars are one of TikTok’s latest features that allows marketers to create multilingual product ads. Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered “digital avatars” that marketers can create to say almost anything to promote their products could soon be a common sight on TikTok.
On June 17, TikTok revealed that it was adding “stock avatars” and a “AI dubbing” function to its Symphony ad suite, which it says will help brands produce and localise content.
Users can select an AI-powered “voice and accent” to read out a script that will be dubbed over the stock avatars, which are “all created from video footage of real paid actors that are licenced for commercial use,” according to TikTok.
In a video demonstration, a text-to-speech programme is shown to be able to simulate the mouth movements of several languages by dubbing over performers who speak in different languages. AI may even be able to generate the script. English, Spanish, Japanese, and Korean are among the ten languages and dialects that are supported.
After identifying the input language, the tool converts it into the user’s destination language. The new avatar function is a part of the AI-powered ad package that TikTok released earlier in 2024. It also includes a “virtual assistant” that searches the platform for trends and may produce scripts and suggestions. TikTok has placed the beta versions of the AI avatars, translation, and dubbing functions behind a waitlist for a certain amount of users. In addition, the site offers “custom avatars” that mimic the appearance of brand ambassadors and content producers while possessing the same “multi-language abilities” as the stock bots. TikTok also mentioned that the community of creators is testing the personalised avatars.
Videos made with TikTok’s AI tools will be immediately tagged as AI-generated “for full transparency.” An AI-cloned content creator is shown in a demonstration video holding a little box with a label in the lower corner.
There are flaws with the AI clones. The “uncanny valley” is a phenomenon when mouth gestures and movements don’t match what is stated, as demonstrated in the video. TikTok’s entry into the world of AI avatars follows Meta’s September 2023 launch of an AI chatbot that featured several celebrities’ likenesses.
Almost thirty well-known people, including Paris Hilton, Snoop Dogg, and former FTX promoter Tom Brady, were Meta-cloned into AI bots that now run their Facebook and Instagram pages.