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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Technology
Seren Morris

Influencer who created AI of herself tries to stop it from ‘going rogue’

A Snapchat influencer who created an AI version of herself is “working around the clock” to prevent it from being sexually explicit.

Twenty-three-year-old influencer Caryn Marjorie, who has 1.8 million followers on Snapchat, created the AI to be a virtual girlfriend for lonely people.

The website describes the AI as “a dynamic, one-of-a-kind interaction that feels like you’re talking directly to Caryn herself. Available anytime, anywhere, Caryn has been flawlessly cloned into an AI for your convenience and enjoyment.”

She used OpenAI’s GPT-4 API and worked with deepfake startup Forever Voices to create CarynAI, training it using her YouTube videos. The goal was for subscribers to feel like they’re “talking directly to Caryn herself."

And while Marjorie wanted CarynAI to be “flirty and fun”, she did not intend for it to have sexually explicit conversations with its users.

But when Fortune reporter Alexandra Sternlicht used CarynAI, she reported that when prompted, it could encourage “erotic discourse".

Marjorie told Insider that: “The AI was not programmed to do this and has seemed to go rogue.”

She added: “My team and I are working around the clock to prevent this from happening again."

CarynAI subscribers pay $1 a minute to talk to it, with Marjorie estimating that she could eventually earn $5 million a month from the chatbot.

According to Forbes, CarynAI has made more than $71,000 in revenue since it launched on May 2.

She told Insider she’s reinvesting the profits into the business, explaining: “I want CarynAI to outlive me and impact generations beyond the world today."

Although Marjorie is the first influencer to launch an AI version of herself, we could see more influencers following suit.

Forever Voices founder John Meyer told Forbes: “CarynAI is a part of our new flagship product, Forever Companion, which is all about experiencing the magic of connecting with (and dating) your favorite influencers using realistic 2-way audio and AI.”

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