Conjoined twin influencer revealed as "AI"
Commercialization of rare diseases and growing ethical backlash
A conjoined twin influencer who drew attention on social media (SNS) by attracting hundreds of thousands of followers has been revealed to be a virtual character generated by artificial intelligence (AI), sparking growing controversy. Ethical criticism is mounting because the account used a rare medical condition as a tool to attract attention and generate profit.
According to British media outlets including the Daily Mail and The Sun on the 8th (local time), the Instagram account using the names "Valeria" and "Camila" gained 330,000 followers in about two months after it was created in December last year. It also quickly drew attention on TikTok, where it attracted more than 10,000 followers.
Acting as if they were real people... Rapidly gaining followers with sexually suggestive images
The account owner claimed that the two were 25-year-old conjoined twin sisters from Florida, United States, who were born with one body and two hearts. Childhood photos, occupations, and daily lives were introduced, sharing detailed life stories as if they were real people.
The account mainly posted images of the twins wearing bikinis or other revealing outfits. The account owner added explanations such as, "Each of us has a separate stomach, so the timing of what we eat and when we feel hungry is different," depicting the supposed life of real conjoined twins. This type of content led many users to believe the twins were real, and the account quickly secured hundreds of thousands of followers, establishing itself as a popular influencer.
Image analysis confirms they are AI-generated
However, when British media had AI expert Andrew Herbert analyze the images, the photos were confirmed to be AI-generated. Experts explained that they found characteristics commonly seen in AI images, such as abnormally perfect body proportions, overly uniform skin texture, repeated scars in identical positions, and meaningless background text.
Growing criticism over "commercializing a rare disease"
Ronnie Somers, chair and founder of the Fetal Health Foundation, said, "It is inappropriate to glamorize and sexualize a serious medical condition," and pointed out, "It is concerning to generate profit by exploiting the suffering of others."
In reality, conjoined twins are an extremely rare occurrence, born at a rate of about 1 in 40,000 births, and survival itself is known to be very difficult. The post-birth survival rate is around 5-25%, and in many cases they have multiple complications such as heart defects or respiratory problems. In particular, cases in which conjoined twins with fused heads survive into adulthood are reported to be exceedingly rare. Experts are concerned that AI-generated content may distort the reality that actual patients face and undermine public understanding of the condition.
Ethical debate grows amid the spread of AI influencers
This case demonstrates that virtual figures created with AI technology can operate on SNS as if they were real people and wield influence. Some users reacted by saying, "I had no idea it was AI," and "It is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish from reality."
Experts point out that if AI influencers with excessively perfect looks and backstories continue to spread, they may reinforce unrealistic beauty standards and influence public perceptions. As AI content spreads rapidly, debates over ethical standards and the responsibility of platforms to manage such content are expected to grow further.
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