Jennifer Lopez and Virgin Voyages Train Deepfake ‘Jen AI’ to Send Personalized Cruise Invitations
Jennifer Lopez has signed up with Virgin Voyages to invite everyone on Earth by name to take a cruise. That’s the initial suggestion before the comedic ad above reveals that it’s a deepfake version of the music and movie star produced with generative AI to promote the cruise line.
Jen AI
Fans of Lopez and boat trips can visit the Jen AI website to create a video starring a synthetic version of Virgin Voyages’ official Chief Celebrations Officer. Jenny from the deepfake block will say the name of the sender and recipient and tailor the video based on the answers to a few questions.
“It’s so important to me that we stop and take time to celebrate special moments in our lives, and encourage others to do the same,” Lopez said. “If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s how important it is to cherish life’s special moments with your inner circle.”
Lopez is only the latest celebrity to embrace deepfakes and generative AI as a promotional tool. Synthetic media startup Metaphysic de-aged Tom Hanks in his upcoming movie and is working with Creative Artists Agency (CAA) to create more generative AI tools. Meanwhile, the creators of South Park raised $20 million for their deepfake AI studio Deep Voodoo. And deepfake media stars are the center of the new British show Deep Fake Neighbour Wars and other shows. Metaphysic first became well-known because of its deepfake Tom Cruise, but later had the chance to showcase its tech when it took fourth place on America’s Got Talent (AGT), including working with voice cloning synthetic speech startup Respeecher to resurrect a digital Elvis Presley.
Virgin worked with British agency Flaunt Digital to bring generative AI to the campaign, although it did not disclose where the technology originated. The process involves automated safeguards and human moderators to prevent Jen AI from generating any controversy with the promotion. In those instances, or if the AI doesn’t recognize how to say a name, the virtual Lopez just refers to everyone as ‘sailor,’ Virgin’s term for its passengers. Virgin and Lopez hope to leverage these tailored appeals to entice people to sign up for a cruise, where they will be obligated by maritime law to dance, according to the ad.
“This extraordinary company was founded on the idea of connecting people and celebrating all of life’s special moments,” Virgin Group founder Richard Branson said. “We want to be the ultimate choice for any kind of celebration travel, and let’s be honest, who can say no to Jennifer?”
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