It can be hard to figure out what is AI and what is genuine content on social media these days. There are some tells, however, especially id you are chronically online like I am. A lot of AI-generated videos on TikTok and other platforms have a certain sheen to them that other videos don’t.
Plus, if you watch AI “humans” talk for a little too long, you’ll start to notice how their mouth movements don’t quite match the words you’re hearing.
Someday, it will be perfect and nearly undetectable. But that day is not today, and a TikTok account with an AI mom influencer is all about showing just how far AI can go on social media.
The AI user on the account is named Mariya, but it’s spelled out as “mar.ai.ya” just so other users are clear on the AI of it all. The content seems to be that of a traditional mommy vlogger, including family cookouts, gender reveals, and other life events.
But it’s all AI, and it’s pretty terrifying if you think about it.
@mar.ai.ya yall wanna see more of them?🫣|| #fypシ #viral #ai ♬ original sound – Jordanwest14
The AI mom influencer on TikTok might fool some users.
In a style that is very Black Mirror, the account led by the fictional and AI-generated Mariya shows her either using a phone to film herself, or using a phone to appear to film herself as the phone is in the shot. Clearly, the way humans make viral content is a little unclear to the AI assistants of the internet.
In one video, Mariya talks to the camera about joining her parents at their house for Labor Day. She even introduces her dad at the grill. Except for wildly random long nails on one of his hands and a far-off look in his AI eyes, he seems pretty normal.
Mariya’s mom and daughter also talk to the camera at different points. With this many family members introduced in the lore of the account, it almost feels icky to know that none of them are real.
Do they know they’re not real? See, it feels like an episode of Black Mirror, like I said.
One TikTok user commented on the video to share how they finally figured out the account is AI.
“Figured out hands and teeth finally,” they wrote. “I have no way of deciphering whether it’s real or not except the phone disappearing out the hand.”
That remark is in reference to Mariya holding a phone at one point during the video until it suddenly disappears without warning.
It’s not clear who is actually running the accounts, but it’s obvious that the goal is for Mariya and her “family” to appear as normal as possible, and similar to other family vloggers out there.
In another video, Mariya gets engaged. However, the captions are misspelled, which is another giveaway that the account is full of AI content. It’s not like anyone is trying to hide that fact, of course.
But to see little clues sprinkled in among the videos where the AI-generated characters seem to try and act like legitimate humans is a little jarring.
The account’s main character admitted to being AI.
@mar.ai.ya once i find out the gender im having it 😂 || #fypシ #viral #ai ♬ body – ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎ ︎
The fact that the AI mom influencer isn’t real isn’t meant to be a secret. In fact, in one video, she says she was thinking about having a baby but then “remembered” she is AI. In the next shot, she has a visible baby bump and she is talking to her fiancé about a gender reveal.
It is entirely possible that AI vlogs like this could become more common, especially if other users follow them as they would a human vlogging family, for updates and life milestones. Again, it is very futuristic, but clearly, not that far off into the future.
