“AI is not the enemy”: the improbable video sung by artificial star Tilly Norwood
The AI creation sings “Take the Lead” and attempts to respond to criticism related to its own existence. Funny or questionable?
Useless provocation or nice clip to be taken in the second degree?
Since her debut last year, Tilly Norwood, a 100% artificial star, has had a string of controversies. Today, she returns with an improbable clip where she tries to respond to criticism of AI… by singing in praise of AI!
In this crazy and ironic clip entitled Take the LeadTilly proclaims on a verse: “AI’s not the enemy, it’s the key” (“AI is not the enemy, it is the key”). We see her crossing London, appearing on talk shows, posing on billboards, taking selfies with her fans, performing in stadiums… in short, living like a true superstar. And then it turns neon pink: pink flamingos, plane in his image, flying dolphins, huge weird inflatable building and much more. At one point, a little girl hugs a store-bought Tilly doll, while another passage shows Tilly struggling to pass a CAPTCHA supposed to verify that she is human…
Clearly, Take the Leadwith its lyrics that invite the actors to “create their own AI avatars to be free“, plays to the fullest of the second degree.
Produced by Particle6, the studio behind Tilly Norwood, the clip precedes “Tilly’s first real AI acting role later this year” in a film and offers a first glimpse of the “Tillyverse”, this new universe of cloud entertainment where AI characters live, interact and work.
The song is inspired by a recent essay by Eline van der Velden, real-life actress behind Tilly and CEO of Particle6 and AI talent studio Xicoia, as well as the “growing conversation” around AI. The lyrics reflect the extreme criticism received last year, but mostly focus on “the humanity and creativity behind Tilly”.
Moreover, this music was generated via Suno, and the clip produced by the Particle6 team using several AI tools, combined with their proprietary creative process. Van der Velden herself played Tilly for the performances. 18 real people worked on the project we are told: executive producers, director, production designer, costume designer, prompt engineer, creative technologist, comedy writer, editor, production assistants, coordinator and actor.
“Tilly has always been a tool to test the creative capabilities of AI – not to steal anyone’s work. As an actress, I loved bringing Tilly to life in this clip, and being able to use performance capture to completely inhabit an AI character is an incredible way to bring an unknown actor like me closer to the craft.”explains van der Velden. “But in the end, even with brilliant technologies, we must remember that good AI content is never instantaneous: it always requires ideas, taste, direction, judgment and time. In other words: humans remain at the heart of the process.”
A convincing ad or in bad taste? Everyone will judge.
