Not only attracting hundreds of millions of views with the AI short film "The Dismissed Girl", this virtual character also surprised when it was quoted at nearly 260,000 CNY (more than 1 billion VND) for an advertising video lasting over 60 seconds. The price makes many people question: Can AI replace "advertising queens" like Yang Mi, Zhao Liying or Bai Lu?
AI actors are becoming "golden geese
The appearance of Phuong Dao Tu shows that China's advertising industry has entered a new stage. With just a small operating team, the AI character is quickly built into a real KOL: having a social media account, personality, personal history and continuously posting everyday content.
After the short film created an effect with more than 200 million views, Phuong Dao Tu began receiving advertising. According to the price list published in Chinese media, a video longer than 60 seconds costs nearly 260,000 CNY, while a short 20-second video also costs nearly 170,000 CNY.
It is noteworthy that this price has surpassed many content creators and KOLs who own millions of followers.
Not only does AI have low operating costs, it also brings many advantages that celebrities find difficult to compete with.
AI actors are not involved in private scandals, do not cancel filming schedules, do not limit working hours and can change their appearance, costumes, expressions or language with just a few operations. For brands, this is a factor that significantly reduces risks when investing in advertising campaigns.
Will AI replace A-list stars?
However, whether AI can completely replace artists like Trieu Le Dinh, Duong Mich, Duong Tu or Bach Loc is still a story quite far away.
Currently, these stars are still in the group of artists with top commercial value in China. According to Chinese media, Yang Mi's advertising cat-xe can range from about 10-18 million CNY (about 36-65 billion VND) for a contract, Zhao Liying and Yang Zi about 8-15 million CNY (29-54 billion VND), and Bai Lu from 5-10 million CNY (18-36 billion VND) - a number that can change from time to time, their popularity.
The gap between the fee of more than 1 billion VND per video of Phuong Dao Tu and the advertising contract worth tens of billions of VND of stars is still very large.
More importantly, brands don't just buy a beautiful face. They invest in influence, fan base, personal reputation and the artist's ability to create media effects.
A successful movie can help Trieu Le Dinh or Duong Tu drag sales up sharply. Duong Mich has been considered the "queen of advertising" for many years thanks to her ability to maintain attraction with dozens of luxury brands at the same time. Meanwhile, Bach Loc is emerging as the face with the fastest growth rate of commercial value after a series of hit movies. These are values that AI has not yet been able to create itself.
Instead of completely replacing, Chinese media believes AI will redistribute advertising market share.
For popular products, short-term campaigns or content that needs to be produced quickly, AI actors can become attractive choices thanks to low costs, high speed and almost no risk.
Conversely, in the high-end segment, especially luxury fashion, international cosmetics or long-term image building brands, the emotional factor and influence of artists still play a decisive role.
