Ai Shinozaki to become first “artificial intelligence gravure idol”
Make the first “AI doll” based on gravure idol Ai Shinozaki.
First off, there’s some serious wordplay going on here: “AI doll” is aidoru (idol), while Shinozaki’s name also references “artificial intelligence.”
In other words, some geeky boffins are planning to create a fully digital version of Shinozaki.
Virtual idols already exist aplenty, from Vocaloid music idols to AKB48 temporary digital members and virtual dating game idols.
How is this different?
Well, they are going to use artificial intelligence based on Ai Shinozaki.
The digital creation will speak like her and learn her moods and behavior from her social media accounts (okay, so what her agency presents as her public persona, then).
The new “fake” Ai could then be used in advertising, digital displays, apps, and so on.
The project currently has an online fundraising campaign.
At the time of writing, 45 people have funded the campaign with ¥626,000 ($5,000) raised of the ¥6 million (nearly $50,000) target. 10% raised almost straight after launching the campaign? Not bad. 56 days remain!
The campaign promo video leaves a lot to be desired and does make you wonder if this ¥6 million will be money well spent, though.
Perks for the campaign include a chance to meet the real Ai Shinozaki. If you pay ¥500,000 ($4,000), you get to go on a date with her! We wonder what you get if you pay a ¥1 million ($8,000)? A date and some extras?
