Wimbledon 2025 not only attracted attention by the top ball but also by a brand new face in the stands: Mia Zelu. With the perfect “virtual life” photos from the first row, MIA quickly occupied social networks. The problem is … she did not exist.
Mia Zelu is actually a virtual infuencer – an account created by artificial intelligence. Even so, she still attracted more than 160,000 followers on Instagram after just a few months of debut, causing thousands of people to be “tricked” to think this was a real fashionista to Wimbledon.
One of Mia's posts wrote: “Still not forgotten the experience just now … Which of the most liked people in Wimbledon this year?”. Accompanied by a series of chanting photos, perfect simulation of the event atmosphere.
The user rushed to leave a comment: “The first time you see you, you are so beautiful”, “It is fortunate that you are there, enjoy it!”. But there are also a few people starting to doubt: “This girl is virtual, guys …”, “Oh, not real people? I'm confused.”
Although the information about the origin Ai is recorded in the account description, but deep in the “See more” button, a detail that many people do not notice and easily deceive. Mia often posted inspirational captions such as: “You will remember the times you continue even if no one sees it. Don't stop. Don't give up.”
According to the research, Mia is Ana Zelu's “younger sister”, another virtual influencer appeared in January 2024. Both belong to the same “Zelu universe”, with the luxurious tourism – fashion – Lifestyle concept, which is a new trend on social networks. The creator of these two characters has not been revealed, but many posts have begun to appear brand logo, referring to the ability to make money from advertising in the future.
Not only MIA or ANA, the virtual trend of virtual infuencer is booming. Names like Lil Miquela (launched in 2016, currently 2.4 million followers) or Aitana (from Spain, earning about 10,000 USD/month) have paved the way for this wave. These characters are created with AI and CGI technology, which can customize the appearance and style to serve the brand or preserve the privacy of the creator.
After netizens discovered the truth, Mia became more and more famous. She seemed to respond indirectly through implicit posts like “When a concept is not suitable for the pattern, people easily misunderstand the motivation” or a piece of music with the lyrics: “Let me be more than a face in the news line”.