What’s next for virtual influencers? Now it’s time for personalized interaction

The world of virtual influencers is booming. Digital personas like Lil Miquela and Imma have amassed millions of followers, securing brand deals with the likes of Prada and IKEA, and redefining what it means to be an online personality.

And it’s not just these two examples. The virtual influencer market as a whole is experiencing significant growth, with its global size estimated at $6 billion in 2024 and projected to expand by 40.8% each year (CAGR) to 2030.

Interestingly, these virtual influencers often achieve higher engagement rates than their human counterparts. Lil Miquela has reported engagement rates of up to 3%, compared to the average 1.5% for real-life influencers.

The success is well deserved. Creators of virtual influencers have seen a vision and executed spectacularly, using CGI and often AI to create online personalities that feel authentic and alive.

But despite their success, there’s a glaring limitation even the best virtual influencers have yet to overcome. They might feel like living, breathing people; but you can’t interact with them like you would a real person. Sure, audiences can comment on their content, and maybe get a response. But the potential for virtual influencers is far greater than that.

Because these ambassadors don’t exist in actual human form, they’re not constrained by our human limitations. People can (and probably should) have an opportunity to interact in real-time with their favorite AI ambassadors. In terms of engagement, it’s the difference between seeing someone behind one-way glass or having an actual two-way conversation with them.

But all that changed this year, with the launch of a new kind of evolved virtual influencer.

Meet Sama: A huge step forward for AI virtual influencers

Regular readers may know Sama, Qatar Airways’ groundbreaking digital human and the world’s first AI cabin crew, who launched last year for the Doha-based airline.

But have you seen her recent travels on Instagram, where she’s already hung out with the likes of Novak Djokovic, explored exciting corners of the world, and invited people to get ready with her for a day of adventures.

Sama represents a new evolution of social media engagement. Unlike traditional virtual influencers, Sama isn’t just a face on social media – she’s a fully interactive AI-powered brand ambassador within Qatar Airways’ QVerse. 

It’s a significant departure from the static, pre-scripted nature of most virtual influencers and highlights how digital humans are moving beyond influence to real-time interaction.

Interactional vs transactional virtual influencers

You’ll be forgiven for thinking the influencer market is marred by people whose purpose is to sell you things. From gym bros trying to shill supplements to brand deals that seem inauthentic at best.

But the potential for interactive virtual influencers runs deeper. Sama is designed to do more than promote a brand; she actively engages with audiences in a way that virtual influencers never have. 

Instead of Lil Miquela posting about going to Coachella, she could tell you about the artists she’s looking forward to seeing or give her expert tips on making the most of festival season (stay hydrated, everyone!)

While traditional AI-generated personas operate in a one-to-many format, producing content for passive consumption, we can now make these experiences interactive, conversational, and personal.

This is how Sama functions. She shares her adventures on Insta; but she’s also interactive, offering the chance for real-time, personalized engagement. Here’s what sets her apart:

• Social engagement: Sama shares moments from her life – not just in her job as a member of Qatar Airways’ cabin crew, but what she does in her downtime as she travels the world.
• Real-time interaction online: In the QVerse, Qatar Airways’ immersive virtual environment, people engage with Sama directly. She acts as a virtual guide, answering questions, providing travel information, and making the experience dynamic.
• Event activation: Sama is a key part of many Qatar Airways events, speaking to attendees via a lifesize digital human kiosk and even speaking to the press.
• Conversational booking: Launched this year, Sama can help people book their flight. Whether it’s the adventure of a lifetime that she can help to schedule, or a business travel that lets you arrive on time and in comfort, Sama is built to help you personally – all through the power of simple conversation.

Why this matters for the future of digital engagement

The evolution from static virtual influencers to interactive digital humans signals a broader shift in how brands connect with audiences. People don’t just want to follow, they want to engage in meaningful, personalized ways. 

And for brands, this is an exciting prospect, offering:

• Smarter flight booking: Everyone knows how inaccessible comparing flights can be. Simply tell Sama what you want and let her do the legwork to find you the ideal itinerary. 
• Deeper customer engagement: Instead of watching a digital influencer passively, audiences can now experience a brand in real-time through conversation and interaction.  Remember those stats about how much customers hate waiting for responses?
• Bridging AI and customer experience: Brands are moving beyond influencer marketing toward functional AI-driven engagement, where digital humans can serve as live assistants and brand representatives.
• A more authentic digital presence: AI-driven digital humans can be tailored to reflect a brand’s values, aesthetic, and customer service ethos, ensuring a more consistent and meaningful brand-customer relationship.

What’s next? AI-powered digital influencers

A great place to start when thinking about launching a virtual influencer for your brand is with backstory. This is how we began with Sama, like all of our digital humans.

Where did the digital person grow up, are they from a big family, what did their parents do, what subjects did they enjoy at school, what are their life goals and ambitions? All of these (and more) are building blocks for creating true personality, forming traits that subtly come through when people interact with your digital human.

And it means the people who do interact won’t feel like they’re being simply sold a product or service; they’ll have a deeper interaction with someone (or something) that has stories to tell, and feels alive and authentic.

As the potential for virtual influencers evolves, we’re likely to see more brands adopt interactive AI personas that can engage in real-time rather than just push curated content, meaning the next generation of digital brand ambassadors will:

• Be available across multiple platforms, from websites to virtual spaces to customer service chatbots.
• Learn and evolve based on interactions, becoming more personalized over time.
• Offer both entertainment and utility, beautifully blurring the lines between brand marketing, customer service, and digital engagement.

With innovations like Sama leading the way, the next evolution of virtual AI ambassadors is closer than you might think. To learn more about the process of creating your own, check out the video below – or get in touch with our team for a demo.