Meta unveiled celebrity-inspired chatbots in a bid to gain an edge over the competition in the AI-powered user assistance market.

Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta’s new AI chatbots and several other AI products at last week’s 2023 Meta Connect event.

The initial rollout will be limited to the United States, with well-known figures such as Bear Grylls, Tom Brady, Snoop Dogg, Kendall Jenner, Naomi Osaka, and Paris Hilton loaning their personality traits to the project.

Such chatbots reportedly differ from OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard in that they offer users a chance to interact more with the bots rather than simply getting their questions answered.

“We’ve been creating AIs that have more personality, opinions, and interests, and are a bit more fun to interact with,” a news release from Meta explained. “Along with Meta AI, there are 28 more AIs that you can message on WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram. You can think of these AIs as a new cast of characters — all with unique backstories.”

Also in the works at Meta is an AI studio that small businesses can use to craft personalized AI virtual assistants. It is currently in the alpha stage of production.

Two new devices were also unveiled during Zuckerberg’s presentation: Meta’s latest virtual reality headset (Meta Quest 3) and its first-generation Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. Both products will soon be able to engage with the new chatbots.

“Smart glasses are the ideal form factor for you to let an AI assistant see what you are seeing and hear what you are hearing,” explained Zuckerberg, according to the Independent.

The AI chatbot personas are meant to draw in younger users. However, some have suggested that Gen Z — a demographic representing approximately 40% of consumers globally — might find the new initiative “cringe.”

“From the way it was initially marketed — or lack thereof — it just seems cringe,” Kobie Fuller, an AI investor and partner at Upfront Ventures, told Yahoo! Finance.

“It’s this random alter ego of a celebrity that you can talk to,” Fuller continued. “The profile says ‘managed by Meta’… If Naomi Osaka is going to have an alter ego, and it’s not really her account, that doesn’t seem like it’s primed to feel authentic.”

Still, Gen Z is generally more comfortable with technology and is considered more likely to consume AI products.

“Definitely the younger you go, the higher the comfort level is with these bots,” Meghana Dhar, a former executive at Snap and Instagram, told The Wall Street Journal.