Synopsis

Artificial intelligence is transforming the monetization landscape for film stars, cricketers, and digital creators. Licensing AI-generated versions of their identities allows celebrities to earn revenue without physical presence. Platforms like Studio Blo and Sparkonomy enable protection and control over digital identities for creators. The growing concern over unauthorized use of identities emphasizes the need for standard licensing and verifiable consent.

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AI cloning is turning celebrity and creator identities into licensable digital assets, opening new commercial opportunities while raising concerns over consent and control. (Representative image)

Mumbai: Artificial intelligence is opening a new monetisation avenue for film stars, cricketers and digital creators, allowing them to license AI-generated versions of their faces and voices for commercial use without being physically present for every production.

For celebrities, this means new revenue from advertising campaigns, branded entertainment and digital content. For emerging creators, identity licensing could provide an additional income stream alongside brand partnerships and platform monetisation.

India’s celebrity endorsement market is estimated at Rs 3,000 crore, while its influencer marketing sector is projected at Rs 3,500 crore, according to industry estimates. Cricketers Hardik Pandya and Shubman Gill are among the early adopters of AI cloning.

However, as generative AI makes it easier to replicate faces and voices, the commercial opportunity raises concerns over consent, unauthorised use and control of digital identities.

Two platforms are seeking to address this emerging market. Studio Blo’s FAIMOUS enables celebrities to create, control and license their AI clones, while Sparkonomy is launching the Open Creator Graph (OCG), an open infrastructure that allows creators to establish their identities and specify how AI systems can use their content and likeness.

With AI cloning, brands are no longer limited to conventional celebrity shoots for advertising campaigns. They can create images and videos of celebrities in different locations and situations to suit their creative briefs, said Dipankar Mukherjee, cofounder of Studio Blo.

“However, the much bigger benefit of cloning celebrities is what it unlocks in terms of branded content—miniseries, microdramas, animated shortform content, vertical series, and even longform series and feature-length content,” he said.

Mukherjee expects 2027 to be pivotal for branded content as brands increasingly use AI to create more engaging content. “The future belongs to monetisation of consent,” he said.

Sparkonomy is targeting a broader creator base. Cofounder Guneet Singh said AI could allow creators to license or lease their identities for content production, generating additional income alongside brand partnerships and sales commissions.

“The key thing is that identity can now be replicated within 30 seconds. Creators who use their identity to make money need to be protected and compensated when someone else uses it. The opportunity is similar to that for celebrities, but at 1,000 times the scale,” he said.

Rajesh Sethi, PwC India’s leader for media, entertainment and sports, said widespread adoption would require standardised licensing terms, verifiable consent and systems to monitor usage, determine pricing and facilitate payments.

“The growing misuse of celebrities’ and digital creators’ identities through AI-generated deepfakes, voice cloning and face morphing has brought personality rights into sharper focus in India,” he said.

Ujjwal Chaudhry, a partner at Analysys Mason, said AI could transform a creator’s identity from an attribute used in content production into a licensable digital asset. The opportunity, however, would depend on infrastructure to protect identities and control their commercial use.

Indian courts have increasingly granted interim protection against unauthorised commercial use of individuals’ names, images and voices. These include cases involving actor Amitabh Bachchan, singer Arijit Singh and podcaster Raj Shamani, who have obtained interim relief against unauthorised use of their identities.

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