Yes another AI post but only because today I came across a LinkedIn post from Gary Vee who I love and adore (I started following him decades ago!) that started
“All of you need to create an AI human to be the face of your company.”
My initial reaction is umm no all of us don’t. I did reply to this and then realised I should expand upon it in a blog post. Let’s start with the term itself umm “AI human.” You can’t be artificial and human. It’s a contradiction baked right into the language. You’re either one or the other. Isn’t calling it an “AI human” is just marketing speak trying to make a fake spokesperson sound more palatable?
Most of Us Already Have Faces
Rather good ones, actually. Faces that have built businesses, earned trust, and here’s a radical thought actually believe in what they’re selling.
These are faces that have stayed up until 3 AM fixing customer problems. Faces that have pivoted when the first idea failed. Faces that genuinely light up when talking about their work because they’ve lived it, breathed it, and occasionally wanted to throw it out the window or set it alight.
So we want to replace that with what, exactly? A digitally rendered spokesperson who’s never used your product, never felt the fear of missing a sale, never experienced the actual human mess of building something from nothing?
The Problem This “Solves”
Let me ask you something. What problem does an AI face actually solve for your small business?
Is it that you’re camera-shy? Hire a spokesperson or get comfortable on camera. Or you build a faceless brand. All are cheaper and more authentic than commissioning a digital avatar.
Is it that you need to be in multiple places at once? You don’t need an AI human you need better systems, clearer messaging, and possibly some strategic delegation.
Is it that you don’t want to be the face of your business? Then don’t be. Use your employees, your customers, or just focus on making your work so good it speaks for itself.
An AI face solves a problem most businesses don’t have. At least not the solo and small businesses I work with. I can see it might (and I emphasise might) be useful for large-scale operations that need to deploy the same message across thousands of touchpoints. If you’re Mr. Snaffydaffy selling toilet paper in every grocery store in America, perhaps this makes sense.
For the rest of us? It’s a solution looking for a problem.
What Struggling Brands Actually Need
If you’re struggling with brand recognition, the issue isn’t that you need a synthetic spokesperson.
You’re likely suffering from:
Unclear positioning. Do people actually understand what you do and who it’s for? Not what you think they understand, what they actually understand. Because if your messaging is muddled, no amount of AI rendering will clarify it.
Unremarkable products. Is what you’re offering genuinely better, different, or more useful than the alternatives? An AI face can’t make a mediocre product compelling. It can only make mediocrity look more expensive.
The cardinal sin of having nothing interesting to say. This is the big one. An AI face won’t fix boring. (see previous post) It’ll just be a very expensive way to say nothing, faster.
The companies that break through don’t break through because they deployed the latest technology. They break through because they had something worth saying and said it in a way that connected with real humans.
The Authenticity Problem
We’re living in an era where trust in institutions, media, and marketing is at an all-time low. People are exhausted being sold to. They’re tired of influencers who don’t actually use the products they promote. They’re skeptical of claims that sound too good to be true.
And your solution to this trust crisis is to introduce a spokesperson who literally doesn’t exist?
The only thing worse than no brand personality is a fake one.
When people buy from small businesses, they’re often buying because it’s not corporate, not mass-produced, not another faceless entity. They’re buying because there’s a human on the other end who gives a damn.
An AI face doesn’t build trust. It erodes it. It signals that you’re more interested in appearing to scale than actually connecting.
The AI Infuencer role.
To be fair, Gary was also talking about AI influencers becoming huge in the future, and I think he might be right about that, at least in certain contexts. We’re already seeing AI-generated influencers with millions of followers, brand deals, and engagement rates that would make real creators jealous.
There’s a legitimate case for AI influencers in specific scenarios. Entertainment brands that want a controllable, scandal-proof spokesperson. Gaming companies creating characters that can interact with fans 24/7. Fashion brands that need a model who can instantly appear in any setting, wearing any outfit, without the logistics of actual photo shoots. In these contexts, the artificial nature is part of the appeal, not a liability.
Here’s the distinction that matters. AI influencers work when the audience knows they’re engaging with fiction and is fine with it. When the artificiality is transparent and part of the entertainment value. When nobody’s pretending this digital creation has actually used the product, struggled with the problem, or lived the experience they’re talking about.
The moment you try to pass off an AI influencer as a substitute for genuine human expertise or experience, especially in the small business world, you’ve crossed from innovation into deception. Audiences are getting better, not worse, at spotting the difference.
The Real Work of Building a Brand
Here’s what actually builds brands:
Consistency. Showing up regularly with valuable content, reliable service, and a clear point of view. Not sexy, but effective.
Authenticity. Being genuinely yourself (or genuinely representing your company’s values) rather than performing what you think people want to see.
Quality. Doing excellent work and letting that work speak for itself. Radical, I know lol.
Connection. Actually engaging with your audience like they’re humans, not metrics. Responding to comments. Having real conversations. Showing that someone’s home.
None of this requires an AI face. All of it requires you to do the work.
When to Ignore Trend-Based Advice
Here’s a helpful filter for evaluating any “all of you must do this” advice.
Does it solve a problem you actually have? Not a problem someone told you that you have. A problem you’ve experienced firsthand and can articulate clearly.
Does it align with your resources and goals? Just because something works for a company with 50 employees and a seven-figure marketing budget doesn’t mean it’s right for your three-person operation.
Does it make you more authentic or less? In a world drowning in content, authenticity is your competitive advantage. Don’t surrender it for a trend.
Who benefits from you implementing this? Sometimes the people pushing hardest for a trend are the ones selling the tools to execute it.
What to Do Instead
Build your business. Show your face, or don’t, but make that choice deliberately, not out of fear or because someone on the internet said you need an AI replacement.
Create content that actually helps your audience. Develop products that genuinely solve problems. Build systems that let you serve more people without losing the human touch.
Also stop implementing every trend that crosses your feed just because someone with a following said you should.
The best brand strategy is almost always the same.
Be clear.
Be consistent.
Be genuinely useful.
Of course be yourself because everyone else is taken, and apparently some of them are considering replacing themselves with robots.
Your actual face, with all its imperfections and authenticity, is enough. More than enough.
Use it.
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