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TikTok and Instagram have an AI influencer problem. Blockchain can help.

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WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 23: TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew prepares to testify before the House Energy and… [+] Commerce Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on March 23, 2023 in Washington, DC. The hearing was a rare opportunity for lawmakers to question the leader of the short-form social media video app about the company’s relationship with its Chinese owner, ByteDance, and how they handle users’ sensitive personal data. Some local, state and federal government agencies have banned employees’ use of TikTok, citing national security concerns (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

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The rise of truly powerful and accessible generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is starting to shake up the social media landscape. New AI tools and even influencers are starting to shape how we interact through platforms like TikTok and Instagram. This is not only concerning in terms of what content can be generated or disseminated, but also poses an existential threat to human creators as well. The solution to this problem lies in what blockchain technology can offer in terms of verified human digital identities.

The rise of the AI-powered influencer

Just recently, TikTok announced was testing a new in-app tool to let users use artificial intelligence to generate avatar images. The tool will allow users to submit photos of themselves and create unique images in a range of poses and styles. These can then be downloaded, shared or used as a personalized profile picture.

Human versus robot. Conflict between artificial intelligence and the human mind. The concept of rivalry. … [+] Scientific digital design template. 3D vector illustration for presentations, flyers or posters.

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This simple tool can allow anyone to have a visually interesting avatar that they otherwise wouldn’t be able to create on their own. Plus, it’s free and nearly instant, boosting creativity and lowering barriers to entry. This is a noble and sound idea in theory, but it is also just the beginning. Another recent revelation from TikTok is that the platform is also exploring creating AI-driven influencers who could promote brands, talk about various topics, and generally do exactly what influencers already do, only they wouldn’t be real.

AI influencers are not entirely new, with prominent profiles such as I am AND Shudu attracting hundreds of thousands of followers. However, until recently, digitally created influencers cost more than an actual human to implement. Things are changing fast. Tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and many others are making it accessible to anyone to create high-quality content with just a few sentences, and there’s no reason to think this trend will slow down.

Social media influence and artificial intelligence

Vertigo3d | E+ | Getty Images

Soon it won’t just be big brands creating their own AI-powered influencers; it will be anyone. Once created, they can then use these characters to promote whatever they want. Think about what fake accounts and bots are already doing means of social communication and it shouldn’t be hard to imagine how dangerous this could be.

In the words of Ed Keller, a leading word-of-mouth authority and influencer and author of Influentials, “At the heart of the power of word-of-mouth, including word-of-mouth from creators, is trust. This is what makes it so powerful and is fueling its growth. The influence of uncontrolled and unverified artificial intelligence is worrying and shows how quickly new technologies could destroy trust in the online world. This is bad news for everyone who uses the Internet, and especially for real-life influencers because they have such a large digital footprint that it can be used to form hyper-realistic, ultra-believable clones of themselves. There are potential negative consequences for marketers, too, if the rise of fake creators undermines the very foundations that have led to the enormous increase in the size and credibility of the creator economy.”

Ed Keller, CEO of the Keller Fay Group, and “one of the most recognized names by word of mouth”… [+] Marketing.

Ed Keller

The threat of bad faith actors spreading misinformation and hateful content, influencing public opinion and even potentially shaping the course of politics is too real to ignore. At this point it is not possible to put the genie back in the bottle. As OpenAI did clear in a recent statement in response to criticism from Elon Musk: “We are making our technology widely usable in ways that empower people and improve their daily lives, including through open source contributions. We provide broad access to today’s most powerful AI, including a free version that hundreds of millions of people use every day.”

Even if a given government attempted to combat this new online reality by creating rules about the type of AI content that can be created and disseminated, these would not be universally enforced. Additionally, some people will always be willing to break the law, so while strong rules should be in place, this problem is bigger than the legal world alone can address.

How Blockchain Technology and Digital Identities Can Save Us from Machines

We must accept that there is no going back, but at the same time work out a practical solution to move forward. This is where blockchain can support us. Instead of controlling what you are allowed to generate, you can create a system to identify the original source of the content. Whether it’s a human or an AI, consumers will be able to see where it comes from and make informed decisions about how to interact with it.

Mark Schaefer, author of the best-selling book Marketing Rebellion

Mark Schaefer

This is especially important given the importance that social media has on society. Mark Schaefer, marketing strategist and best-selling author, believes we are on the cusp of a profound moment in business. “From now on, the number one question our customers will ask is, ‘Is this real?’ Companies need to spare no expense to protect their brands, executives and employees from counterfeiting. I think blockchain has to play a role in this as a source of truth.

“I’m worried that companies have no idea what’s going to happen,” Schaefer said. “A brand is trust. No trust, no branding. This should worry everyone.”

Recently, leaders at Davos have been thinking about how to use blockchain to track, sort, and manage the data on which AIs are trained. As Sheila Warren, CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation, declared on CNBC: “I actually think that AI verification and sort of checks and balances… will be driven and supported by blockchain.” This is a good start to building trustworthy autonomous identities, but what about untrustworthy ones?

Sheila Warren, CEO, Crypto Council for Innovation

Sheila Warren

Decentralized technology can provide credentials in a fully verifiable and unforgeable manner, thanks to the immutability and transparency of these networks. Blockchains cannot realistically be hacked or manipulated, and any changes made to them can always be seen by all participants.

If we want digital profiles with verification credentials, this technology is the way to go. In this way, digital IDs can be provided to every human and artificial participant on social media, defining their online personality, history, preferences, and any other information they choose to share. In the interest of privacy, much of this data would be self-encrypted and under the control of users, who could decide what is and what cannot be seen by the public. However, one metric that should always remain public is their evidence of humanity or lack thereof.

Authentication via facial recognition concept. Biometric. Security system.

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Real people can take a “humanity check” to prove they are real, and human influencers can also plug in a wide range of credentials to make it clear they are who they say they are. However, any AI influencers should also be transparent about this fact, in a way that cannot be circumvented.

In such a system, any profile lacking the credentials of humanity could be assumed to be generated by a machine. That doesn’t mean this content is nefarious, but it would give consumers some degree of awareness of what they’re getting. Social media platforms would be free to tag, block or filter AI content as they see fit, but gone would be the days when robots could influence social discourse without oversight.

It’s not like the “blue tick” on X, where users pay a fee and get an icon next to their name and that’s about it. This would be available solely through the user providing some form of meaningful proof of who they are, likely confirmed by another verified human, and only then would their blockchain-enforced credentials be assigned. This way, users can trust that a verified account is exactly that and not just someone who was able to pay the membership fee.

Final thoughts on AI avatars

If built correctly, such a system could allow us to navigate this new world of artificial intelligence in a way that maintains individual privacy, the freedom to choose human sources, and the ability of people to earn a living through content creation. There will be many details to analyze along the way, but there is currently no other plausible model for protecting social media from the growing impact of artificial intelligence. Laws can only go so far and we need something practical to put in place.

Blockchain and digital identities provide realistic means to protect consumers and the human workforce. This is a step we need to take soon because the speed of AI development is not slowing down. However, the opportunity exists for a more powerful and more secure Internet for the next generation and beyond.



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