12 November 2026 News

E-Commerce and Livestream Shopping : During the “Double 11” period in 2026, digital human anchors became a new battleground for major e-commerce platforms. Taobao and Tmall are vigorously promoting AI anchor ecosystems. On October 15, Tmall launched the “AI-dol” live streaming opening ceremony for Double 11, where athlete Ning Zetao (宁泽涛) interacted on stage with their “AI avatar,” with officials claiming a similarity rate of 95%, and the topic garnered over 6.1 billion Weibo views. Taobao’s official digital human products are divided into a premium version (499 yuan/month) and flagship version (1,299 yuan/month), allowing merchants to obtain “public domain exposure rights” to expand visibility. However, during late-night hours, numerous AI anchors exhibited repetitive scripted language, rigid eye movements, and inability to accurately answer detailed questions such as “whether returns and exchanges are supported,” triggering consumer complaints of “looking too eerie” and “uncanny valley effects.” Beijing Municipal Administration for Market Regulation also reminded “Double 11” consumers to watch for risks including unclear digital human anchor labeling and that AI conclusions are for reference only. Meanwhile, Jingdong Shuzi Ren JoyAvatar (京东数字人JoyAvatar) partnered with JD.com’s home appliances and home furnishings business group to launch the “My AI My Home·Star Anchor” competition, selecting five digital human anchors who received “digital celebrity identity certificates” from Beijingjingjijishukaifaqu Xinxijishu Chanye Ju (北京经济技术开发区信息技术产业局), becoming China’s first official identity-authenticated digital human group. Hengjie (恒洁), Haier (海尔), Xiaomi (小米), Xiaotiane (小天鹅), and Shitou (石头) brands respectively selected exclusive digital recommendation officers to drive sales during JD.com’s “11.11” period, with JoyAvatar’s cumulative merchant services exceeding 100,000. The Nanjing (南京) “Yaojing De Koudai (妖精的口袋)” brand (Xinghu Jituan (行狐集团)) operates complementary AI digital human and live human streaming; Linyi (临沂)’s Lanshan District e-commerce base uses digital human “Xiaohao” to enable 7×24 hour uninterrupted live streaming, filling gaps during late-night periods when live humans are difficult to staff. DR Zhubao (DR珠宝) Tmall’s flagship store achieves 24-hour continuous digital human explanations of diamond 4C knowledge, led by the jewelry and collectibles business area and digital human streaming general manager Gong Cheng (宫诚) in exploring a new “human-machine collaboration” operating model. Jiangsusheng Nongye Nongcun Ting (江苏省农业农村厅) launched digital human “Su Youyou” in the “Su Nong Premium·Agricultural Stories Across Four Seasons” campaign, participating in agricultural product brand storytelling and roadshow summaries.

Film, Television and Entertainment Industry : AI digital avatars are deeply penetrating film and television production and celebrity commercialization. Artist You Benchang (游本昌) licensed the “Ji Gong” image and voice to the AI short drama NetEase《Fake Ji Gong the Dragon Subduer》 before passing away, becoming a digital legacy; Wang Zuxian (王祖贤) 端游《Tian Xia》 released the all-AI short film 《Shadow of Allure》 on its eighteenth anniversary, bringing back Qi Wei (戚薇)’s “AI avatar” to reprise the role of Nie Xiaoqian after a 22-year hiatus from the screen, yet controversy arose as the image converged toward “influencer faces”; artist Chen Jianbin (陈建斌) officially announced her personal AI digital avatar “Han Qingxia,” taking on the lead role in the AI manhua-drama 《End of Days Summer Bloom》, stating in a Golden Rooster Awards interview that “AI is a tool to expand creative boundaries, not a rival,” emphasizing the combination of live-action and AIGC and the preservation of human judgment; actor iQIYI discussed his AI image “evolving from being unlike to increasingly similar,” believing AI provides richness while real actors provide “soul and spirit.” iQIYI Guangying Jiyuan Technology announced at the 2026 World Conference the signing of over a hundred artists into the “Zhang Ruoyun (张若昀)” talent database, proposing to create AI digital avatars for artists for use in film and television production, yet artists Wang Churan (王楚然), Yu Hewei (于和伟), and Hunan Radio and Television swiftly denied ever granting authorization, sparking industry controversy. Mangguo TV (芒果TV) (Mangguo Lingchuang (芒果灵创)) has made “five moves in eight years” in strategic AI positioning, independently developing Mango Large Model and AI Director “Ai Mango”; Mangguo TV (芒果TV) AIGC platform has aggregated over 40,000 young content creators and 200+ film and television institutions, accumulating tens of thousands of AI character assets; Lu Haibo (卢海波), Vice President and CTO, introduced that AI applications cover over 80 business scenarios across the group with over 93% coverage, representative works including China’s first AI historical documentary 《Taiwan Island Records》, the first satellite-broadcast AI long-form drama 《Post-Journey to the West》, and deployment of the “Xuanji (璇玑)” Chinese History and Cultural Relics Large Model for AI digital humans explaining cultural relics. In gaming, actor Li Linfei (厉蔺菲) in 《Shadow Blade Zero》 played multiple digital characters “Yu’er” and “Zhen Yao” through motion capture and facial capture technology, showcasing a new model of real-actor performance transitioning to game digital characters. Tencent launched the first AI game companion Agent “Eci Yuan (鹅次元)” targeting the PC game market, providing virtual companion digital human interaction in games like 《League of Legends》 and 《Shadow Blade Zero》 based on screen recognition and character memory systems.

Virtual Avatar Rights and Governance : As AI digital humans and AI short dramas scale up in development, “who owns the face” has become an industry focus. On November 9, Hongguo Duanju (红果短剧) launched “virtual image creation and rights confirmation” capabilities at its creator center, requiring creators to submit ownership materials for three types of sources: real person authorization, IP authorization, or original design. After platform review, a rights confirmation record is generated for reference in subsequent content distribution and risk handling, though the platform explicitly does not provide risk coverage for content. This move is viewed as a patch measure to address irregularities such as “homogeneous character materials,” “multiple people with the same face,” and “cross-drama face clashes.” Meanwhile, “facial authorization” has emerged as a new form of part-time work in places including Chengdu (成都), where ordinary people need only ten minutes to complete facial capture and sign an authorization agreement to receive compensation starting at around 300 yuan. Digital images are then listed by platforms for AI short drama producers to select from. Lawyers warn that such agreements typically lack clarity on usage scenarios, duration, and withdrawal and deletion mechanisms, posing risks of misuse in inappropriate plot content or information leaks. Beijing Jingkaiqu (北京经开区) simultaneously issued a “digital idol identity card” to JD.com digital humans, entering the digital human’s exclusive name and facial features into the official archive system to clarify commercial ownership responsibilities and boundaries. Previously in January 2026, “virtual idol Yuri” also obtained the nation’s first virtual idol identity certification. Industry analysts believe that as Gongxinbu (工信部) publicly solicits comments on the mandatory national standard “Metaverse Classification and Labeling Digital Human Identity Identification Requirements,” commercial digital humans within the country are expected to achieve “one person, one code” in the future.

Government Affairs and Public Cultural Services : Digital humans are being widely embedded in government services and public cultural communication scenarios. Shanghaishi Yibao Ju (上海市医保局) reminds insured individuals that they can consult online with the “Shanghai Medical Insurance Digital Human” to learn about new regulations for outpatient medication proxy dispensing. Beijingshi (北京市) organized a themed publicity campaign titled “Traversing the Long March Beacon Fires, Youth Dialogue with Faith,” where the AI interactive publicity program “Museum of Party History’s Wonderful Night” achieved on-stage dialogue between youth lecturers and AI digital humans, using technological means to recreate historical moments. Aomen (澳门) At the welcome reception of the “Civilizational Dialogue International Forum 2026,” the digital human “Kiki” extended greetings to guests, echoing the theme of the sub-forum “Civilizational Light in the AI Era.” Jiangsu (江苏) Wuxi’s “2026 Jiangsu (江苏) Social Organizations High-Quality Development Achievements Exchange Conference” introduced the “Suzhou Xiaoshe” AI digital host, and set up an AI interactive exhibition area showcasing services such as “Intelligent Answers Customer Service” and “Intelligent Auxiliary Case Handling.” In rural legal publicity, Hubei Xianning’s procuratorial organs, through Jiayuxian Jianchayuan (嘉鱼县检察院), launched AI digital human prosecutors for online teaching, conducting 159 sessions of minor legal publicity education throughout the year covering 50,000 participants.

AI Avatars in Healthcare : Tsinghua University’s team built “Zijing AI Yiyuan (紫荆AI医院),” which has constructed a matrix of 54 AI doctor agents covering 27 clinical departments and is undergoing testing at 9 hospitals in Beijing, Jiangsu (江苏), Guangxi and other locations, with nearly 200 doctors establishing personalized AI avatars to handle administrative tasks such as preliminary consultations and medical record organization, while diagnostic decision-making authority remains with human doctors. The AI health application “Ant Yikang” launched by Ant Group is led by 8 academicians including Liao Wanqing (廖万清), Dong Jiahong (董家鸿), and Wang Jun (王俊), with over 2,000 doctors nationwide opening AI avatars covering approximately 28 specialties, providing only health education and consultation; Hangzhoushi Diqi Renmin Yiyuan (杭州市第七人民医院) Mao Hongjing (毛洪京)’s AI avatar served patients 3.68 million times in a year, far exceeding its human counterpart’s annual service volume; Shanghaishi Dongfang Yiyuan (上海市东方医院) Duan Tao (段涛)’s AI avatar has received 160,000 consultations, with 24% of inquiries from males, filling the gap where men cannot accompany prenatal check-ups; Qinghaidaxue Fushu Yiyuan (青海大学附属医院) Fan Haining (樊海宁) leverages AI avatars to serve herders in plateau regions, alleviating the problem of distant medical access. Health departments in Shijiazhuang, Hebei and Huangpu District, Shanghai have integrated “Ant Yikang” into their “family doctor” signing platforms.

Entrepreneurship and Personal Digital Avatar Practices : Post-05 entrepreneurs Tang Yanwei (唐言为) and Peking University students Wang Yiwen (王奕文) jointly developed the “Youxueban UniGrow (友学伴UniGrow)” educational platform, launching “Study Master AI Clone,” which collected forty authentic on-the-job experiences from Tsinghua and Peking University students, art exam candidates, and others to build an interactive knowledge base. The related topic garnered over 4 million views on Douyin, and the team broke through from over 1,200 projects at the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) (WAIC) roadshow, securing ecosystem support from Tencent education and other sectors. Hongqi (宏碁) founder from Taiwan Shi Zhenrong (施振荣) established a one-person company more than twenty years after retirement, hiring two AI clones named “Aying” and “Guanfu” to assist with creative work, and attended the 2026 APEC Economic Leaders Meeting as Taiwan’s representative.

Hong Kong Case Studies : Zhou Jielun (周杰伦)’s mother Ye Huimei (叶惠美), agent Yang Junrong (杨峻荣), and others jointly founded Juxing Chuanqi Jituan (巨星传奇集团), which opened the world’s first “Pandabot Cafe” tech café in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. The store is equipped with a robotic arm barista, Yushu G1 (宇树G1) humanoid robot “star store manager,” quadruped robot dog, and AI digital human ordering interaction screen, offering multilingual intelligent recommendation services. The group’s chief financial officer Lai Guohui (赖国辉) stated that future stores may accept digital currency payments, and plans to expand this model globally starting from Hong Kong.

Industry Reflection and Industrial Cycles : The virtual digital human industry has experienced three cycles of rise and fall spanning technological marvel, capital narrative, and commercial speculation. In October 2026, Alibaba Cloud announced the initiation of delisting procedures for its virtual digital human product, with full service discontinuation scheduled for November 2027, marking a symbolic endpoint of the industry cycle. Tracing back to the metaverse narrative boom ignited by Douyin’s virtual beauty blogger “Liu Yexi” going viral in 2021, hyperrealistic virtual humans such as AYAYI emerged in dense waves, but as AIGC technology proliferation in 2023 democratized the capability to “look like real people,” capital pivoted toward large language model narratives, and subsequent low-quality proliferation of unattended digital human livestreaming, the virtual digital human industry endured three successive shocks: technological price premium erosion to zero, cliff-edge decline in financing enthusiasm, and reputation collapse. Currently, the sector retains practical applications only in scenarios such as customer service navigation, government broadcasting, and corporate showrooms. Correspondingly, the employment impact of AI digital humans on real-life actors is emerging: an actor Xu Peng (许鹏) who previously starred in short dramas featuring “domineering CEOs” had contracts terminated and switched to selling vegetables due to AI digital human short drama production costs being merely one-tenth of real-person filming, reflecting substitution pressures between real-person and AI short dramas. Additionally, Cyberspace Administration of China’s “Clear and Bright” special action has focused on irregularities where certain MCN institutions exploit AI digital humans to fabricate “expert” personas in private domain livestreaming to target elderly groups and sell health supplements, requiring platforms to add prominent labels to AI-generated content and strengthen private domain livestreaming oversight.