An athlete decided to shoot his shot with an influencer he believed had attended this year’s Wimbledon.
On Instagram, Mia Zelu shared a series of photos from the Grand Slam, including one of her sitting courtside at the All England Club and sipping on her Pimm’s, a fruit drink popular among attendees.
Mia, a self-described digital storyteller, documents her seemingly perfect life to her over 155,000 Instagram followers.
However, she clarifies in her social media bio that she has “no TikTok account.”
Cricketer Rishabh Pant appeared to be charmed by social media influencer Mia Zelu
Image credits: miazelu / Instagram
Naturally, she couldn’t post content on the video-sharing platform, as her thousands of followers would realize she’s not real.
One of the men who fell for the ruse was Indian cricketer Rishabh Pant. Unaware that Mia was a product of artificial intelligence, he liked several of her posts, which led to mockery from sports fans.
“Still not over the event… but the party’s a whole other game,” reads the caption of one of Mia’s recent posts, liked by Rishabh. “Which Wimbledon match was your fave?”
Image credits: rishabpant / Instagram
The cricketer was at the event on Monday (July 8), saying he was looking forward to watching world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
“Someone should probably tell Rishabh Pant that this is an AI account…” reads one of the comments on the AI influencers’ page.
“Rishabh Pant thinks he’s interacting with a real girl, totally oblivious to the fact that it’s an AI,” someone else wrote.
A third announced: “Liked by Rishab Pant ☠️💀”
Mia, who boasts over 155,000 Instagram followers, clarifies in her bio that she’s an AI-generated influencer
Image credits: miazelu / Instagram
Rishabh, who is set to play in the third Test between England and India, reportedly removed his likes from Mia’s posts after netizens pointed out the mistake.
In other posts, “influencer” Mia can be seen enjoying herself at a concert, going on a helicopter ride, attending a football game, and posing with a cup of coffee against a jaw-dropping ocean backdrop.
Image credits: miazelu / Instagram
She has also posted a few short videos, which were AI-generated as well.
Her Instagram Story Highlights feature a collection of photos from trips to Portugal, Spain, Canada, and the United States.
“Me romanticizing my 7-minute break like it’s a movie scene 😂 What are your plans for the weekend?🧴☀️” reads the caption of one of her posts.
The Indian cricketer was caught liking some of her photos, seemingly unaware that she isn’t a real woman
Image credits: edgeofcricket / X
Image credits: edgeofcricket / X
For those who still have their doubts, Mia clarifies that she’s an “ɪɴꜰʟᴜᴇɴᴄᴇʀ-ᴀɪ” in her Instagram bio. Additionally, she mentions that she’s open to “collaborations.”
But Mia isn’t the only popular AI influencer to attract attention on social media. Lil Miquela, a half-American, half-Brazilian, and 100% computer-generated woman, has amassed 2.4 million followers on Instagram.
In addition to posting photos of her daily life, 22-year-old Miquela speaks out on issues such as LGBTQ+ rights and promotes clothing and perfume brands.
Miquela, who debuted on Instagram in April 2016, was for months the subject of speculation about whether she was real or not.
“Someone should probably tell Rishabh Pant that this is an AI account…” wrote one netizen
Image credits: Gareth Copley / Getty Images
The “Instagrammer” was reportedly created by a Los Angeles-based startup called Brud to blend the worlds of AI, commercials, and influencers.
Giordano Contestabile, who works at Bloglovin— a company that connects brands with influencers— believes that the rise of fake content creators won’t have the same impact on viewers compared to real people promoting real experiences.
Image credits: miazelu / Instagram
“I think there are opportunities for brands to promote their products, but I think it’s more superficial than what you’d see with a real person,” he told the BBC. “The human aspect of influencer deals is key here. I don’t think you can replicate it.
“Getting someone to follow you on Instagram is easy. But getting someone to identify with you and create an emotional connection—that’s a different challenge.”
Sara Giusto, a “talent manager” for Imma, a pink-haired AI influencer from Japan, would disagree. Though Imma clarifies in her profile that she’s a “virtual girl,” her stories resonate with her nearly 400,000 followers as if she were real.
Mia is among a growing number of AI models who attract brand deals and followers through a mix of clever marketing and public curiosity
Image credits: miazelu / Instagram
Giusto said Imma, who has partnered with Porsche, BMW, and Amazon Fashion, once had “a big fight with her brother where they blocked each other. And she posted a picture of her crying, and she was like, ‘How do I get back my brother?’”
The manager explained that people were sharing their real experiences in response to Imma’s family issues.
“Gen Z’s don’t really care that she’s virtual,” she shared. “I mean, if a virtual human is interesting and inspiring and you can be friends with them and feel a connection, then I think there’s nothing wrong with it.”
Image credits: magazineluiza / lilmiquela / Instagram
Artificial intelligence models also save marketing companies money they would otherwise spend on logistics, such as plane tickets and planning photoshoots.
Others, like Snapchat influencer Caryn Marjorie, have taken a slightly different approach by hiring a company to clone her likeness using AI to develop an audio-driven chatbot service.
“I call Caryn AI a social experiment. It was the very first digital clone of a real human being sent out to millions and millions of people,” the 25-year-old told ABC News.
Marjorie charged $1 a minute to talk to Caryn AI, the chatbot designed to sound like her, which she marketed as “your virtual girlfriend.”
The woman says she made $70,000 in the first week, with some users talking to the bot for 10 hours a day. Ultimately, she shut down the chatbot less than a year later because it had spread misinformation about her life and played into users’ “deepest, darkest fantasies.”
“I’m amazed a professional cricketer’s eyesight is this bad,” one reader quipped
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