World’s first beauty contest launched for AI influencers

To enter the competition, contestants must submit AI-generated images and respond to a series of questions, including the age-old classic: how do you dream of making the world a better place?

The number of contestants will then be narrowed down to ten, with the final three announced at an online awards ceremony next month. The winner will receive $5,000 in cash and a mentorship program valued at $3,000.

Fanvue’s co-founder, Will Monanage, has described the Miss AI pageant as a significant step in solidifying AI creators within the broader entertainment landscape.

‘The creator economy is an extremely exciting place to be in right now,’ Monanage said, noting that the rapid growth in AI creators has opened new opportunities for content monetisation.

Monanage added that he hopes the pageant will someday become ‘the Oscars of the AI creator economy.’

Among the judges for the Miss AI pageant is Britain’s pageant historian Sally-Ann Fawcett. She is just one of two human judges who will be assessing candidates alongside AI models Emily Pelligrini and Aitana Lopez.

Yes, you got that right: the internet’s most famous AI influencers will be tasked with judging their digitally-created peers.

Despite enthusiasm from event organisers, the pageant hasn’t been welcomed by all.

It has been criticised for its potential to further promote unrealistic beauty standards and reinforce toxic gendered norms – two common concerns that have shrouded AI technology since its advent in the mainstream.

Critics argue that using AI to create ‘perfect’ beauty contestants could exacerbate the dehumanisation often associated with real-life pageants. Not to mention, the absence of a Mr. AI competition raises concerns about a possible misogynistic streak in the AI beauty industry.

Some have accused event organisers of trying to sidestep criticism associated with beauty pageants by featuring non-human contestants.

Meanwhile, others believe the competition is trying too hard to normalise a technology that is already sparking widespread debate and concern around the world.

Either way, the Miss AI competition is sure to shape the conversation around how this novel technology is used in the entertainment industry and – being the first of its kind –will also set an interesting precedent for future AI-related events.

Whether you believe the pageant is innovative or controversial, it’s clear that the boundaries between technology and tradition are becoming more blurry by the day.