Deepfake fitness sellers
AI‑generated fitness influencers are now commercialized — personas like 'Melanskia' are promoting real supplements (a $50 detox powder) to hundreds of thousands of followers, blurring authenticity lines in wellness marketing [][]. That trend raises disclosure, trust, and regulatory questions for creators and brands in health and fitness.
The persona is run by founder Josemaria Silvestrini, age 28, who says he built Modern Antidote while studying and operates the business from Shanghai/Beijing. (dnyuz.com) Silvestrini told reporters he deploys “more than three dozen” synthetic creators to test messaging and targeting, a tactic he described as lowering marketing costs. (dnyuz.com) He has reported roughly 1,000 jars sold so far through those campaigns, according to interviews and company comments about early sales. (dnyuz.com) The product appears on Amazon with an ingredients listing (sulforaphane, milk thistle, NAC) and the Amazon page shows “1K+ bought in past month” on the listing used for promotion. (amazon.com) Silvestrini said he plans to fund a clinical study to test the company’s microplastic‑removal claims when resources allow, while the product is already being marketed. (amishamerica.com) Federal guidance already treats endorsements the same whether a face is real or synthetic: the FTC’s Endorsement Guides (revised in 2023 and expanded with Q&A) require clear disclosures of material connections and give the agency enforcement tools. (ftc.gov) States are moving, too: New York enacted a “synthetic performer” disclosure law signed December 11, 2025 that requires conspicuous AI‑use notices in ads and sets civil penalties (e.g., $1,000 first violation, $5,000 for subsequent violations). (governor.ny.gov) Academic and watchdog work raises detection concerns: a February 2026 British Journal of Psychology study found people (including 36 “super‑recognizers” in the sample) were largely overconfident and performed only marginally better than chance at spotting AI‑generated faces. (techxplore.com) Platform researchers and media monitors have identified coordinated networks of synthetic wellness promoters and apparent scam operations on short‑form platforms, and talent‑agency figures caution that virtual‑only influencer strategies are proliferating. (mediamatters.org)
