The Splice 🧬 Meet YouTube Star and Virtual Alien: Blu from Xanadu
Plus learn why Hugo Boss tapped virtual influencers alongside major A-list celebrities for their rebrand campaign and and why Porsche invested in a virtual influencer startup.
Good afternoon!
Welcome back to The Splice 🧬 by VirtualHumans.org: a weekly newsletter curating the latest news, developments, and insights in the virtual influencer space.
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🧬 Core Strands from This Week
Hugo Boss Hires Virtual Influencers to Promote Their Rebrand
🔎 The Synopsis: Hugo Boss split into two brands: Hugo and Boss. To promote their rebrand, ‘Boss’ tapped virtual influencers Nobody Sausage and Imma to participate in their star-studded campaign.
🧬 The Splice: Boss hired not only virtual influencers but also A-list celebrities such as Hailey Baldwin and viral internet stars (like Khaby Lame from TikTok) alongside them. A true testament to the power of virtual influencers as tastemakers and celebrities.
Who is Virtual Alien and YouTube Star, Blu of Xanadu?
🔎 The Synopsis: We sat down and spoke to Blu, a virtual alien on a mission to build an empire and document the whole process on his YouTube channel.
🧬 The Splice: Blu’s advanced cinematics and real-time 3D content are the result of one hard-working technician named Cory Strassberger, who uses Unreal Engine and the MetaHuman creator to power his virtual influencer. Thanks to widely-accessible programs like these, it’s easier than ever to launch a virtual influencer from scratch.
🔭 What We’re Looking at This Week
Virtual Influencers in the Automotive Industry
🔑 Key Quote: “‘From a brand and marketing perspective, there is enormous potential for Porsche as virtual influencers are playing an increasingly important role in the Chinese ecosystem in terms of customer touchpoint…The average age of Porsche customers in China is 35. Therefore, it is critical for us to understand the values, hobbies, habits, and consumer behavior of the young population in China. iMaker is hitting a sweet spot in terms of interacting with Gen-Z through the introduction of its avatars.” — Porsche Official Newsroom
3 Brands That Created Virtual Influencers in the Metaverse
🔑 Key Quote: “YPulse’s upcoming metaverse trend report found that nearly a quarter of 13-39-year-olds have followed a virtual person on social media, but perhaps more notably, the majority of young consumers who play virtual world games say brands should hire avatars as influencers to promote their product” — YPulse
How a Virtual Human's Artwork was Both Created and Sold at a Hong Kong Auction
🔑 Key Quote: “MonoC (or @mo.noc on Instagram) is a female character created by marketing company Gusto Collective. According to the auction house, the artwork took in at least 100,000 live data points in real-time as the bidding progressed on all 50 lots. The work was thus generated and rendered live progressively throughout the week depending on the data points coming in.” — CampaignAsia
Best,
VirtualHumans.org
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Insights by Makena Rasmussen, Christopher Travers, and Astrid Hiort.