Digital Humans and the Story Behind Lil Miquela

a16z Podcast

You’ve probably heard of ‘Lil Miquela. The 19 year-old Brazilian-American influencer has millions of followers and has partnered with the likes of Samsung and Prada. But despite capturing the hearts of many, she’s not real.

But you probably haven’t heard her origin story. In this episode we take a trip back to 2016, to a world that looked much different to today, together with two of Miquela’s creators – Trevor McFedries and Isaac Bratzel – cofounder and Chief Design and Innovation Officer of Brud at the time.

We learn what inspired the experiment and what early signs indicated that Miquela was not just a novel idea. In a world where spinning up an influencer, we learn what it took to capture mindshare, the pushback they’ve received, what a “scalable influencer” means, and what they think is to come.

Resources:

‘Lil Miquela on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilmiquela/

‘Lil Miquela on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWeHb_SrtJbrT8VD-_QQpRA

Find Trevor on Twitter: https://twitter.com/whatdotcd?lang=en

Find Isaac on Twitter: https://twitter.com/izykbenjamin

Find Brud on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brud.fyi

Isaac’s new avatar company: https://www.avataros.com/

Timestamps:

• 00:00 - Introduction
• 02:18 - The key insight
• 04:05 - A new breed of influencers
• 06:25 - Miquela’s aesthetic
• 09:30 - Early signs of success
• 13:01 - Narrative and fan engagement
• 16:45 - The technology
• 18:14 - Expanding past Miquela
• 22:34 - Traction and generative AI
• 26:45 - A new reality
• 31:55 - Early pushback
• 33:38 - Misunderstanding reality
• 36:23 - Fear of new technologies
• 37:47 - New technological unlocks
• 41:13 - Scalable influencers

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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.