Japan’s next influencer boom may not feature humans at all. From financial advertising to entertainment and livestreaming, companies in the country are increasingly betting on AI-powered virtual personalities that can interact with audiences, promote brands and build fan communities without human involvement.
The shift is becoming visible across industries. In perhaps the earliest adoptions in finance, Nomura Holdings in 2023, hired virtual influencer imma to promote Japan’s tax-free investment accounts under the Nippon Individual Savings Accounts (NISA) programme as brokerages attempt to attract younger investors. Imma, known for her pink bob hairstyle and nearly a million followers across Instagram and TikTok, was developed by Tokyo-based virtual human company Aww Inc.
The campaign reflected a pivotal shift in Japan’s creator economy, where companies are exploring AI-generated personalities as long-term digital assets that can operate across advertising, entertainment and social media platforms.
“As we enter 2023 and 2024, that moment has arrived,” Moriya said in an interview published by Kindred Ventures. “Soon, imma will integrate with AI and become autonomous. We will succeed in creating many such virtual entities.”
The company says it is building AI-driven virtual humans capable of livestreaming and interacting with users in real time without continuous human operation. Its latest AI character project, MIRAI, was selected for Forbes JAPAN’s “20 HOT CREATORS” feature in the magazine's March 2026 issue, which highlights creators shaping the country’s future content industry.
MIRAI combines generative AI, storytelling and Web3-linked digital economies. The project also includes a token ecosystem through Holoworld, a Web3-native AI platform collaborating with Aww.
Aww’s ambitions have also attracted Nvidia. In 2024, the two companies announced a partnership to improve AI-driven virtual humans using Nvidia’s Omniverse and Audio2Face technologies, which help generate real-time facial animation and lip-syncing for digital characters.
Unlike celebrity influencers, virtual personalities do not face scheduling conflicts, burnout or public scandals. They can be customised for campaigns, adapted for different languages and kept active around the clock.
That commercial appeal is already attracting major brands. Aww has worked with companies including BMW, IKEA, Walt Disney Company and Coach. In 2025, Coach launched an AI-powered in-store experience in Tokyo featuring imma interacting with shoppers in real time.
Virtual influencers are also becoming common in global fashion campaigns. Prada has previously collaborated with virtual influencer Lil Miquela, while brands including Calvin Klein, Boss and Pacsun have experimented with AI-generated personalities in advertising and metaverse campaigns.
Industry reports show the market is expanding rapidly. Virtual influencers now operate across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and gaming platforms, with some attracting millions of followers and generating advertising revenue comparable to human creators.
“Japan is teeming with a vast variety of characters that exist and interact daily,” Moriya said. “While imma is still distinctive from other Japanese characters in context and technology, expanding further means focusing on international outreach.”
Moriya linked the popularity of virtual humans to Japan’s broader cultural traditions around storytelling and animism. He said Japanese entertainment has long explored relationships between humans, machines and virtual identities through anime and manga.
The company believes those storytelling traditions can now merge with AI systems capable of memory, conversation and real-time interaction.
That storytelling element may be one reason virtual influencers have remained commercially relevant beyond their novelty factor. Lil Miquela, one of the world’s earliest virtual influencers, built online engagement not only through visuals but through fictional storylines, relationships and online drama that blurred the line between reality and fiction.
The company has also partnered with Nvidia to develop conversational AI-powered virtual humans using Nvidia’s Omniverse technology platform.
Moriya said future AI characters could manage fan relationships, livestream continuously and operate across entertainment and infrastructure projects. He added that advances in AI memory systems may eventually allow virtual humans to handle information and interactions at a scale beyond human capability.
Aww currently has around 15 characters and says its technology now allows it to create several new virtual humans every week.
The broader influencer industry is also moving in that direction. Some human creators are already experimenting with AI-generated clones to handle fan interactions, endorsements and content production. Talent agencies and technology firms are increasingly developing tools that allow influencers to license their likenesses for automated content creation.
Some experts argue that virtual creators can improve efficiency and reduce costs for brands, but they may struggle to replace the emotional connection associated with human creators. Research published in 2023 found that audiences tend to trust virtual influencers more when they appear alongside humans, because it makes them seem more relatable and authentic.
There have also been controversies. Last year, virtual influencer Lil Miquela faced backlash after participating in a sponsored campaign involving a fictional leukemia diagnosis designed to raise awareness about bone marrow donation. Critics said the campaign crossed ethical boundaries by using an AI-generated character to simulate a serious illness.
Concerns around disclosure are also growing. As AI-generated personalities become increasingly realistic, platforms including TikTok have started introducing AI-content labels to distinguish synthetic creators from human ones.
At the same time, improvements in generative AI are making it cheaper and faster to create realistic digital humans with consistent personalities and storytelling arcs.
Still, the future may not be entirely virtual. Industry executives increasingly believe the creator economy could evolve into a hybrid system where AI handles scale, automation and continuous engagement, while human influencers remain central for trust, lived experience and emotional connection.
For now, Japan appears determined to lead the experiment. And if companies like Aww succeed, the next global internet celebrity may not be a person at all.
The shift is becoming visible across industries. In perhaps the earliest adoptions in finance, Nomura Holdings in 2023, hired virtual influencer imma to promote Japan’s tax-free investment accounts under the Nippon Individual Savings Accounts (NISA) programme as brokerages attempt to attract younger investors. Imma, known for her pink bob hairstyle and nearly a million followers across Instagram and TikTok, was developed by Tokyo-based virtual human company Aww Inc.
The campaign reflected a pivotal shift in Japan’s creator economy, where companies are exploring AI-generated personalities as long-term digital assets that can operate across advertising, entertainment and social media platforms.
The influencer who never sleeps
Aww founder Takayuki Moriya, in an interview, said the company has been preparing for a future where virtual humans become autonomous through AI. According to Moriya, the company began developing imma in 2018 with the idea that storytelling, online communities and digital identities would eventually merge with artificial intelligence.“As we enter 2023 and 2024, that moment has arrived,” Moriya said in an interview published by Kindred Ventures. “Soon, imma will integrate with AI and become autonomous. We will succeed in creating many such virtual entities.”
The company says it is building AI-driven virtual humans capable of livestreaming and interacting with users in real time without continuous human operation. Its latest AI character project, MIRAI, was selected for Forbes JAPAN’s “20 HOT CREATORS” feature in the magazine's March 2026 issue, which highlights creators shaping the country’s future content industry.
MIRAI combines generative AI, storytelling and Web3-linked digital economies. The project also includes a token ecosystem through Holoworld, a Web3-native AI platform collaborating with Aww.
Aww’s ambitions have also attracted Nvidia. In 2024, the two companies announced a partnership to improve AI-driven virtual humans using Nvidia’s Omniverse and Audio2Face technologies, which help generate real-time facial animation and lip-syncing for digital characters.
Brands want consistency, not controversy
Japan’s virtual influencer sector is gaining attention as advances in generative AI lower production costs and improve real-time interaction. Companies are increasingly viewing AI personalities as scalable intellectual property that can appear in advertisements, maintain social media accounts and build fan engagement continuously.Unlike celebrity influencers, virtual personalities do not face scheduling conflicts, burnout or public scandals. They can be customised for campaigns, adapted for different languages and kept active around the clock.
That commercial appeal is already attracting major brands. Aww has worked with companies including BMW, IKEA, Walt Disney Company and Coach. In 2025, Coach launched an AI-powered in-store experience in Tokyo featuring imma interacting with shoppers in real time.
Virtual influencers are also becoming common in global fashion campaigns. Prada has previously collaborated with virtual influencer Lil Miquela, while brands including Calvin Klein, Boss and Pacsun have experimented with AI-generated personalities in advertising and metaverse campaigns.
Industry reports show the market is expanding rapidly. Virtual influencers now operate across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and gaming platforms, with some attracting millions of followers and generating advertising revenue comparable to human creators.
Anime logic meets AI economics
According to Moriya, Japan’s long history of anime, manga and character-based storytelling gives the country an advantage in developing AI-powered virtual personalities.“Japan is teeming with a vast variety of characters that exist and interact daily,” Moriya said. “While imma is still distinctive from other Japanese characters in context and technology, expanding further means focusing on international outreach.”
Moriya linked the popularity of virtual humans to Japan’s broader cultural traditions around storytelling and animism. He said Japanese entertainment has long explored relationships between humans, machines and virtual identities through anime and manga.
The company believes those storytelling traditions can now merge with AI systems capable of memory, conversation and real-time interaction.
That storytelling element may be one reason virtual influencers have remained commercially relevant beyond their novelty factor. Lil Miquela, one of the world’s earliest virtual influencers, built online engagement not only through visuals but through fictional storylines, relationships and online drama that blurred the line between reality and fiction.
From avatars to autonomous businesses
Aww says it is now moving beyond static digital influencers toward autonomous virtual entities. Moriya said the company is researching character-specific large language models that would allow virtual humans to develop distinct personalities and communication styles.The company has also partnered with Nvidia to develop conversational AI-powered virtual humans using Nvidia’s Omniverse technology platform.
Moriya said future AI characters could manage fan relationships, livestream continuously and operate across entertainment and infrastructure projects. He added that advances in AI memory systems may eventually allow virtual humans to handle information and interactions at a scale beyond human capability.
Aww currently has around 15 characters and says its technology now allows it to create several new virtual humans every week.
The broader influencer industry is also moving in that direction. Some human creators are already experimenting with AI-generated clones to handle fan interactions, endorsements and content production. Talent agencies and technology firms are increasingly developing tools that allow influencers to license their likenesses for automated content creation.
The authenticity problem
The rapid rise of AI influencers is also triggering debate around transparency, ethics and consumer trust.Some experts argue that virtual creators can improve efficiency and reduce costs for brands, but they may struggle to replace the emotional connection associated with human creators. Research published in 2023 found that audiences tend to trust virtual influencers more when they appear alongside humans, because it makes them seem more relatable and authentic.
There have also been controversies. Last year, virtual influencer Lil Miquela faced backlash after participating in a sponsored campaign involving a fictional leukemia diagnosis designed to raise awareness about bone marrow donation. Critics said the campaign crossed ethical boundaries by using an AI-generated character to simulate a serious illness.
Concerns around disclosure are also growing. As AI-generated personalities become increasingly realistic, platforms including TikTok have started introducing AI-content labels to distinguish synthetic creators from human ones.
The next creator economy may be synthetic
The rise of virtual influencers comes as brands globally look for alternatives to traditional celebrity marketing. AI-generated personalities can be controlled entirely by companies, making them easier to scale across advertising, gaming, commerce and entertainment.At the same time, improvements in generative AI are making it cheaper and faster to create realistic digital humans with consistent personalities and storytelling arcs.
Still, the future may not be entirely virtual. Industry executives increasingly believe the creator economy could evolve into a hybrid system where AI handles scale, automation and continuous engagement, while human influencers remain central for trust, lived experience and emotional connection.
For now, Japan appears determined to lead the experiment. And if companies like Aww succeed, the next global internet celebrity may not be a person at all.
