South Africans are not only following real-life influencers on social media, but also ones completely generated by artificial intelligence. Kim Zulu is a 25-year-old fashion blogger from Johannesburg. She has her own TikTok, Instagram and even LinkedIn profile, only there’s one catch: she doesn’t actually exist. So-called virtual influencers are on the rise in South Africa and are working with more and more international brands. Report by Tom Canetti, Caroline Dumay and Stefan Carstens.
