- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg talked to Verge about the "huge need" for AI versions of celebrities.
- He, however, said it was "more of a 'next year' thing," due to brand safety concerns.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg thinks there's a "huge need" for AI versions of celebrities for fans to interact with.
Using Kylie Jenner as an example, Zuckerberg said during an hour-long interview with the Verge published Wednesday: "People want to interact with Kylie. Kylie wants to cultivate her community, but there are only so many hours in a day."
He explained that AI could serve as an assistant to Jenner and would be fun for consumers to interact with. "It'll be clear to people that they're not interacting with the physical Kylie Jenner, it would be kind of an AI version," he added.
However, Zuckerberg said AI versions of celebrities could be "more of a 'next year' thing" due to brand safety concerns — as celebrities would want to be certain their image won't be used to make problematic statements.
"Oh yeah, but in some ways, the technology doesn't even exist yet to make it that trained," said Zuckerberg, pointing to the limitations of current AI technology.
Zuckerberg's interview with the Verge was recorded last week. Meta unveiled 28 AI personalities for its chatbots at the Meta Connect event on Wednesday.
Kylie Jenner's sister, Kendall, was one of the celebrities who lent their likeness to these AI characters — alongside other celebrities, including Snoop Dogg, Tom Brady, and Paris Hilton. Kendall's AI persona is Billie, a "No-BS, ride-or-die companion."
For context, this isn't the first time someone has hyped up the possibility of AI performers.
Already, users have reported seeing a proliferation of viral AI-generated music and celebrity deepfakes on social media.
In April, Canadian singer Grimes said she would split royalties 50/50 with anyone who successfully used her voice in an AI-generated song.
However, not everybody is as optimistic as Zuckerberg and Grimes about the potential of AI in the media.
Spotify's CEO said the music industry has "legitimate concerns" about the spread of AI-generated songs, adding that his platform was working with partners on solutions to protect artists.
Meanwhile, protections against AI have been a central concern fuelling the current Hollywood actors' strike, over fears that studios might use AI-generated performances to digitally replace actors.
Zuckerberg and Meta did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider, sent outside regular business hours.