If you thought that only white-collar professions like coding were in danger of being disrupted by AI, think again.
Vogue magazine has featured AI-generated models in its August 2025 issue. The models appeared in advertisements for Guess, a California-based clothing and fashion brand. Apart from a tiny disclaimer on the top right, there was no telling that the models in the magazine weren’t real.
The model appeared in an ad for Guess, wearing a zig-zag patterned dress. She was blonde and carried a handbag. It would’ve been impossible to tell the model was any different from the other human models that graced the pages of Vogue, but for the disclaimer. “Produced by Seraphinne Vallora on AI”, the image said in a tiny font that most people would’ve missed.
In another image, the same woman is shown seated wearing a floral blue-yellow dress. Again, it’s impossible to distinguish her from the other human models in the issue.
The benefits of using AI for photoshoots are obvious. These images cost a fraction of the money that a physical shoot would’ve cost, including getting on location, setting up lighting, doing post-production, not to mention the costs of hiring the model. Also, AI can create different styles immediately — instead of a photoshoot in Ibiza, the AI creators can create a photoshoot with a completely different model wearing the same clothes in Egypt in minutes.
Guess isn’t the only company that’s been using AI for creating mass media. Amazon Prime’s House of David series had extensively used AI for its sweeping historical footage. Netflix had said last month that it had used AI in a shot where a building collapsed for an Argentinian show, and found it to be 10x faster and much cheaper than traditional methods. Several companies, including Kalashi and Ixigo, have created full ads using AI, and a Bollywood film has even been re-released 10 years later with an ending that was altered with AI. There’s even a beauty contest for AI-generated models. And with AI only getting better all the time and creating ever-more realistic photos and videos, it appears that the digital acting and modelling industries might end up being disrupted by AI in a big way.