The Vogue AI model backlash isn’t dying down anytime soon

AI-generated “models” have now made their way into the hallowed pages of Vogue.

In the August print edition of the magazine, a Guess advertisement features an almost-too-perfect model wearing a striped dress and a floral playsuit from the brand’s summer collection. In very small print, there’s a note saying that she was created using AI.

While Vogue states the AI model was not an editorial decision, the fashion magazine has still faced considerable backlash online. Some critics have gone so far as to call it the “downfall of Vogue.”

One X user posted: “Had to end the Vogue magazine subscription I’ve had for years because the latest magazine used AI models ??? In Vogue? AI models in Vogue?”

Although the AI-generated model appeared in an ad campaign rather than a fashion editorial, for many, that’s beside the point. “Note to publications doing things like this: It makes you look cheap and chintzy, lazy and hasty, desperate and struggling,” another user wrote.

This isn’t the first time an AI model has appeared in Vogue. The June 2024 Vogue Portugal issue featured an AI-generated model on its cover, while the May 2023 edition of Vogue Italia used artificial intelligence to create the background of a cover featuring Bella Hadid.

As AI becomes increasingly embedded in our daily lives and workflows, it’s now infiltrating both digital and analog media. Fast Company previously reported that one in three Gen Z consumers now makes purchasing decisions based on recommendations from AI-generated influencers, according to research from Whop, a marketplace for digital products. Could the same apply to AI-generated models?

Seraphinne Vallora, the agency behind the ad, created the AI model after being approached by Paul Marciano, Guess’s cofounder, via Instagram DMs. The company’s Instagram page, which has over 225,000 followers, features hundreds of similar AI-generated supermodels—all conforming to the same Eurocentric beauty standards, devoid of human flaws or unique features.

The founders told the BBC that they’ve attempted to feature more diverse models, but those posts failed to gain traction. (Fast Company has reached out to Vogue, Guess, and Seraphinne Vallora for comment.)

As one X user wrote: “As if beauty standards haven’t become unrealistic enough, now girls will be competing with and comparing themselves to women who aren’t even real. Incredible work, everyone.”