Inside the weird and legally dubious phenomenon of AI replicas that copy content creators for views and profit

Skipping down a red-carpeted Tudor-style staircase while balancing a delicate cup of tea, a red-haired man with a bob by the username of Duke of Ashcombe seems to be nothing more than ecstatic as a smiling woman sweeps in to join his dance in a video. In another video, the same Duke swiftly skips alongside a windswept shore, still clutching to the same white teacup, with a caption reading “Dear Gentle Scroller.” But despite the charming world-building of the account behind thes...