In China, people are renting out their faces to AI
Rest of World Kinling Lo and Viola Zhou ● Covered by 2 sources
Chinese platforms are paying people $15 to $700 to license their faces for AI-generated content, creating a marketplace for facial data as producers increasingly use AI for dramas and advertisements. ActID launched in March with 800 registered users and prices ranging from 99 to 500 yuan per episode, while ByteDance removed over 85,000 unauthorized deepfake videos since early 2024. The licensing model offers people compensation for their likeness but raises concerns about long-term control, unclear authorization scope, and inability to prevent unauthorized face-swapping or future misuse of biometric data.
Why it matters
New platforms are paying people to license their likeness for AI-generated dramas and ads, creating a new marketplace for biometric identity.
