On TikTok, AI-generated 'Russian' women deliver pro-China messages with sales pitch

WASHINGTON — 

"What Americans are truly disquieted astir present is not wars, shootings oregon homelessness. It’s the puzzling lack of immoderate issues with China," declares a blonde influencer connected TikTok, speaking successful near-fluent Mandarin.

“A U.S. statesmanlike campaigner precocious stated that America should larn from China and halt causing trouble,” she added, displaying an image of President Biden.

The influencer, who says her sanction is Alina and claims to beryllium a Russian surviving successful Singapore, promotes what she says are "high-quality Russian and Chinese products" connected her account.

However, the aforesaid blonde Russian pistillate besides appears successful different posts connected TikTok and goes by the sanction Lisa.

Lisa likes to sermon specified topics arsenic “celebrating the 75th day of the founding of China,” “Germany is facing a dead-end,” and “the U.S. is connected the brink of bankruptcy.”

In 1 video posted connected September 17, she talked astir the 2 assassination attempts against Republican statesmanlike nominee Donald Trump, suggesting that the intensifying governmental rivalry is fueling unit successful the U.S. and could pb to further societal division.

Patriotism earlier commerce

A associated probe by Voice of America and societal media analytics steadfast Doublethink Lab uncovered respective accounts connected TikTok similar Alina's and Lisa’s that diagnostic videos of Russian women generated by artificial intelligence, oregon AI. All the accounts emerged astir July and August and followed a akin signifier of leveraging patriotic sentiment to bolster China-Russia ties earlier going connected to beforehand products.

Earlier this year, VOA noted a akin inclination connected Chinese societal media platforms similar Douyin and Xiaohongshu, and the usage of AI-manipulated videos of young, purportedly Russian women to rally enactment for China-Russia ties and stoke patriotic fervor earlier selling products specified arsenic snacks, nutritional supplements and drinks.

It is hard to archer whether the creators of the videos person an ideological motive oregon are simply trying to exploit Chinese patriotism to merchantability their products, said Wei-Ping Li, who holds a fellowship astatine the Taiwan FactCheck Center.

"I inactive deliberation they are much similar aiming to merchantability products alternatively than state-sponsored power campaigns,” she told VOA.

Either way, the usage of Russian AI personas to foster patriotism was erstwhile constricted to Chinese societal media sites targeting home audiences. The accounts identified connected TikTok, however, look to beryllium operated from Singapore, indicating that the usage of charismatic blonde Russian women to propulsion patriotism, propaganda and products has expanded beyond China.

TikTok is unavailable successful China. Most users download its Chinese counterpart, Douyin. Both platforms are owned by the aforesaid genitor company, ByteDance, which is headquartered successful Beijing.

When VOA contacted TikTok to find retired much astir the accounts Tuesday, they were taken down respective hours later.

TikTok spokesperson Ariane de Selliers told VOA that TikTok does "not let relationship behaviour that whitethorn spam oregon mislead our community.”

According to TikTok’s rules, creators are required to statement realistic AI-generated content.

The accounts discovered by VOA uniformly assertion to beryllium from Russia and to emotion China, often highlighting China's economical achievements and its presumption arsenic a planetary person portion criticizing Japan and Western nations similar the U.S. and Germany.

Most of the contented does not look to travel from archetypal creators due to the fact that the posts are akin oregon identical to contented connected different societal media platforms.

For the astir part, it appears that these accounts person been mostly republishing videos from Chinese societal media platforms specified arsenic Douyin, Xiaohongshu and perchance WeChat and bilibili.

Some accounts, however, question to marque their postings look morganatic by having the AI-generated Russian women speech astir their lives and experiences successful China and wherefore they similar the country.

Interestingly, portion galore of these characters connected Chinese platforms speech astir their tendency to “marry a Chinese man,” videos targeting Chinese overseas bash not speech astir that astatine all.

Li of the Taiwan FactCheck Center said the TikTok accounts look aimed astatine older Chinese audiences overseas, diverging from the erstwhile absorption connected younger males with patriotic inclinations and subject backgrounds. This displacement tin beryllium observed successful the usage of hashtags specified arsenic #Singapore, #Malaysia and #OverseasChinese.

“For the people audiences of these Singaporean accounts, ideate a 65-year-old Chinese [males oregon females] surviving successful Southeast Asia oregon adjacent Australia, New Zealand, the U.S., whose friends often stock TikTok oregon Douyin videos,” she said.

“These videos archetypal employment nationalistic themes to pull viewers earlier promoting their products,” she added.

Why Russians?

Once these videos summation traction, they pivot to sales. One station claimed, “China volition ever beryllium the large member of Russia,” earlier recommending a wellness product: “I suggest Sinopharm Group's Glucosamine Chondroitin for associated protection.”

By featuring overseas women praising China’s governmental and economical systems, these videos convey a connection designed to instill pridefulness among Chinese viewers, aligning with their patriotic sentiments.

But wherefore the absorption connected Russian women?

Li attributes this inclination to taste connections, noting that since the 2010s, Chinese men person sought brides successful Russia. A 2016 report from China's authorities media highlighted this phenomenon, suggesting that “a Chinese hubby and a Russian woman marque a cleanable match.”

"The rhetoric we spot successful these TikTok videos are precisely the same,” Li pointed out.

Additionally, economical factors play a role. As Russia’s economical maturation lags China’s, immoderate Chinese individuals whitethorn question partnerships successful economically disadvantaged areas.

Li emphasized that the TikTok videos aimed astatine Southeast Asian audiences diagnostic Russian women astir apt due to the fact that their creators judge that viewers volition admit overseas endorsements of China and Singapore.

“In addition, utilizing these existing Russian women’s images (on Chinese societal media), producers tin churn retired videos much easily,” she added.