China begins issuing official ID cards to AI-generated virtual characters
Beijing has launched a pilot project granting official administrative identity documents to virtual characters created by artificial intelligence (AI). One of the first recipients is the virtual singer Yuri.
Beijing, the capital of China, has started a pilot project under which virtual characters created by artificial intelligence (AI) receive official administrative documents that serve as proof of identity. It is an experiment with the legal and administrative status of digital characters in a country where many companies and developers work in this field.
First recipient: a virtual singer
One of the first recipients of such a document is the virtual AI singer Yuri. She has a registered name, address and facial features, and has been assigned a "Digital Artist Card".
Regulatory sandbox
The card was issued within the Beijing E-Town regulatory sandbox. A regulatory sandbox is a controlled environment in which new technologies and the rules governing them can be tested before wider rollout.
The source text on the project is truncated, so the exact legal status of the documents and the next steps of the project are not known. The estimate it gives of how many players work in China's digital human and avatar sector is also cut off mid-sentence.
