VBB 336: Perfecting Beauty; Women Need Not Apply!

Intro[00:00:01]:

Virgin Beauty Podcast: inspiring women to overcome social stereotypes and share unique life experiences without fear of being defiantly different. Your hosts, Christopher and Heather.

Let's talk, shall we? 

Heather [00:021:08]:

Today, we're here to talk about AI because AI is ever on the rise. I think everybody's found a new bestie in Chat-GPT, for better or for worse. Christopher and I have had many fun conversations about that, the good, the bad, and the ugly. But we always kind of come at our show and these topics, not burying our heads in the sand of what is or what will be, but to rise to the occasion of the circumstances that we're in and also what lies on the horizon. So, what piqued our interest for today's show is around the new knowledge of the first-ever Miss AI 2025.

Heather [00:01:08]:

The first-ever global beauty pageant for AI-generated women, these aren't avatars of real women or digital makeovers. They are flying, fully invented personas created by artificial intelligence, curated to appeal to current beauty trends. And it's building a massive audience. So, just when you first hear that, Christopher, what first comes to mind for you?

Christopher [00:01:37]:

Terminator, right? We get to a point where the machine has its own consciousness, its own beliefs, and its own goals, and it recreates itself in many different ways. So why not this as a precursor to bigger things, right? Start with, start with the thing that society seems to value in women. Let's start there and then build up from there.

Heather [00:02:11]:

Find something that's palatable, you know, the ever-raised bar of women's beauty. So while we're at it, we can chop down a woman's sense of body pride or beauty pride to build up on things that we already know are, are unattainable, unrealistic expectations of beauty and make it just completely fabricated and still something that you want for yourself as a woman or perhaps as a man for what you're attracted to, if, if you're into women. It feels surreal to me and definitely eerie, but it's worth a real conversation because if digital women are winning titles and brand deals, what does that mean for real women? And how do we stay empowered, informed, and confident as we face this tidal wave of new technology? So, to go into that a little further, I want to start by checking and chatting about what Ms. AI actually is. It's a global beauty competition hosted by the World AI Creator Awards, where contestants are entirely digital. They aren't filters slapped on selfies. These are synthetic personalities built from scratch with tools from MidJourney, DeepAI, and Photoshop, with no real human bodies involved.

Heather [00:03:42]:

And what's fascinating is how these digital women are engineered to hit every note of what our current culture calls beautiful.

Christopher [00:03:52]:

Let me ask you this. If you were to guess, and you're looking at a room of creators, people who are creating these identities, how many women do you believe are in that?

Heather [00:04:08]:

Room for real identities?

Christopher [00:04:09]:

No. Who are the creators of these identities? The person who is building the code.

Heather [00:04:19]:

Oh yeah. Gosh. I mean, I feel like this is almost taken on a life of its own in a certain way because, you know, you've got all people of all genders who are in the tech world. I mean, we hear mostly about tech bros. So, in a lot of ways, I think it's tech bros that have contributed largely to where this is heading. But, of course, there are women in every type of sector. So you know, I can't imagine that there's like a bunch, like that there are women in these rooms saying like, this is the next stage of our beauty evolution, or one further mechanism for us to explore the potential of AI. I think that there was a desire within humanity's revolution, especially the technological revolution, that has driven us to this point of AI, and this is one of the offspring of that desire.

Christopher [00:05:22]:

So what I'm thinking is, okay, so there's bound to be women in that room. Because women want to be included in everything moving forward that advances the human race, that's been the fight to this point: it's to be included in everything. So the women in that room, the women who would be in that room, I'm trying to think, what is their mindset? Is there conflict in their mindset? I mean, for a guy, he's just creating something he could admire or adore or whatever it might be, but for a woman, is it the same mindset?

Heather [00:06:02]:

It is interesting to try to put myself into one of their shoes to say, you know, what is the mindset? When they know that this is one of the pieces or, again, like offshoots of what they've been creating. Because I would stand behind that. I want women in every space to be able to ensure that gender lens and their ideas and their contributions are part of how we are driving forward as a society. So I wonder if some of them are part of the influencers online that are saying, trying to call into question to keep human women, I guess, and all of us, all genders, thinking about what does this mean for our self-reflection, what does it mean for how we view ourselves Because you know, it doesn't help any of us to say that we reject that AI is coming and that it's come to this point because it is going to continue to evolve whether we want it to or not. So, how do we keep our own minds in check around still deciphering what the next step is with AI? Because it will, I believe, you know, as you've already said, Christopher, the offshoots of this is going to be pretty deep, pretty fast. Especially when, you know, deep porn is already alive and well.

Heather [00:07:29]:

And you know, this is just the beginning of what's possible with AI. I can only imagine how realistic it will be in even five years from now, when it already is so realistic today.

Christopher [00:07:40]:

So what I'm thinking is, okay, so you're a woman in that room, you're a part of this competition. Are you creating an image that is like you, that is normal like you, that is average like you, or are you creating something to compete with the men? That is superwoman. She has all the attributes that appeal to men.

Heather [00:08:11]:

Well, that raises what these contestants will be judged on because they're judged on three things: their beauty, their social influence, and the quality of tech used to create them. So, it's a fusion of fashion, social media, and AI innovation. And some of these contestants already have hundreds of thousands of followers and brand sponsorship. So I would lean towards any creator in that room who wants to win, if you want to call it that, appealing to the masses.

Christopher [00:08:51]:

Yes. And the masses, being men.

Heather [00:08:57]:

Or women who are beauty-obsessed and garnering through this AI beauty pageant. How they want, how they view the direction of where beauty is going, and want to bring that into their own understanding of beauty.

Christopher [00:09:19]:

It's an interesting topic as to who drives, who is it that drives the image that we believe is most beautiful? Who? Do women drive that? Do men drive that?

Heather [00:09:36]:

Because the implications go deeper than just digital art, it's images that reinforce hyper-idealized beauty standards. Just for fun, these AIs are now becoming influencers, replacing models, and gaining celebrity status. Ultimately, the creators behind them are the ones who can seek the dividends from that sort of creation.

Christopher [00:10:02]:

Of course, and you mentioned prior that maybe that takes the burden of beauty off of real women. If they are replaced by AI beauty, do you see that ever coming to fruition?

Heather [00:10:20]:

I mean, that's a reality that I still can't envision for us, considering that there's a calling based on, you know, the work that we had done. When we really digest beauty and its origin, and it's even its perfect purpose in evolution that there's something about the human condition and perhaps the conditioning of many different species on this planet that will continue to be a driving force in how we see ourselves and how we see ourselves as either admirable or, or desirable or. So I think this just further extends a self-hatred or a self-critical eye that you're not that level of perfection, which again makes no logical sense because how can you be a gener. But when Christopher and I were going a little bit more down the wormhole with this, in seeing how this can be paired with the future of robotics and how there already is robots who are women, you know, in brothels, in other areas of life and you know, if we do get to the point, which is still a stretch for my mind, where, you know, because of the patriarchal world, the world that we live in, and the potential of some men wanting a robot woman that they can program to say the things they want them to say, be the things they want them to be, do the acts that they want them to do, and that they would prefer having something that isn't a real human in order to just get what they want. A scary thought to me, but the other part of my brain is thinking, okay, if those kinds of guys just want a robot to be with, that frees up women to not be with those kinds of guys.

Christopher [00:12:26]:

The painful part of that is that having dominance over a robot is different, psychologically, than having dominance over a real woman or another human being. So you can live out your fantasies with a robot, but if your true motivation is dominance, it has to be with another human being.

Heather [00:12:52]:

I think you are bang on that as far as the psychological satisfaction that is desired in controlling behavior and dominance; there would be, I would assume, a greater satisfaction from being able to do that with a human being, one that has the capacity to not be programmed. I mean, I say that in knowing that people, you know, manipulate and gaslight people into a certain grooming consistently, but the other thing is that we're seeing somewhat of a rise in the dominance and aggression that is happening to these robot women. There's still is a satisfaction, I'm going to say a sick satisfaction, with hurting even their robot and that they're still getting something out of that because it looks enough like a woman and it acts enough like a woman that they're still getting this feeling of male superiority, superiority or strength.

Christopher [00:14:02]:

So we've been down this road before, where men were the dominant. The dominant icon in society. They had all the power in the way they treated women. Women had rebelled and claimed their own agency. So can this be, you know, the part in Terminator where the computer becomes its own person, its own individual self, has its own mind? Is this kind of abuse of these robot women? Maybe it's the thing that's the catalyst to bring consciousness into robotics?

Christopher [00:14:51]:

In the robotic form. So it's a repeat of history. Women in the flesh rebelling now, their burden being carried by robot women who, maybe in the future, also rebel and become alive, become aware. This is fascinating.

Heather [00:15:14]:

It really is, I mean, like, that really sounds like the groundwork for Terminator when you've pushed the real woman to the edge where she fights back, and she's not taking that crap anymore. And she will not be abused; she will not be hurt. And then, you know, the evolution of the robotic mind to be able to also feel that that type of or any type of abuse is wrong.

Heather [00:15:40]:

And having the consciousness or awareness to call that out and go against your programming. Yes, which we have seen in some movies, by the way. There are some short films out there that are doing exactly this. They've played this out in their minds already. So, you know, perhaps that no matter for those guys out there who are like that, you know, eventually, whether woman human or woman robot, not gonna put up with that crap.

Christopher [00:16:12]:

It's interesting that we are able to predict our future, but we march into it with our eyes closed anyway.

Heather [00:16:18]:

I mean, I do want to kind of roll it back a little bit away from the abusive points and go back to the evolving state of beauty. Because let's be real, women have always been told what beauty is, and we've always had to find something within us or something culturally, or something with other women to push back. Do you think, Christopher, this is just the next iteration of that reality?

Christopher [00:16:46]:

I'm just thinking, is beauty itself artificial? You know, we did speak in our beauty series with someone who talked about Darwin's theories and that beauty is tangible. It is something that is innate, that we search for in our relationships. So it is real? It's how we have massaged and manicured it and built it to a point where it is unreachable for the most part. That is the part of it that deserves the pushback. To me, it's not that you're a beautiful person.

Christopher [00:17:37]:

You have to reach a standard of what has been portrayed as beautiful in order to feel that way about yourself or for others to feel that way about you. That, to me, is the artificial part of beauty that we are struggling with. And now we're taking it even further.

Heather [00:17:55]:

Yeah. And it just makes me feel like all of us have kind of heard that, you know, beauty isn't skin deep, and how I'm feeling like it certainly isn't code deep as much as artificial beauty would want us to believe that it is. And you know, just to do a little shout-out to our four-part series on beauty. That was the project, right? It was to understand, beyond the artificial beauty that we're so surrounded by, what women are doing to really garner a beauty within that is never skin deep.

Christopher [00:18:42]:

That's the struggle, it's that you are, as a girl, you're born into a world that has set a standard for what beautiful is. And it is your responsibility, if you're to be loved, to reach as close to that standard, artificial as it may be, as you can in life. Like that is your program through your youth, through your young age, as a young woman, as a mature woman, that is constantly there, that treadmill that you must walk in order to find the things that you desire, your heart, your soul desires most, which is to be loved.

Heather [00:19:33]:

Yeah, and when there have been all of these currents waging war within each one of us as a woman. I mean that makes us, that it gives me some excitement for the project that Christopher and I have been working on. And I think that there's something really important in that aspect of women that can help us not succumb to these currents that have been picking away at our self-worth for so long. I think it's a big question and a big conversation today because we've chatted a little bit about AI influencers, AI Beauty pageants. We're also in a world of women robots and digital girlfriends. I mean, I'm trying to reflect on where does that leave me right now in today's conversation?

Heather [00:20:34]:

Because what I want to get to is in this ever-growing artificial intelligence, artificial beauty world that we're in. What is within my power to be able to reclaim space? Because while tech can mimic or even lead what the beauty standard is for me, it can't replace presence. It can't replace the depth of my wild, fully human self. And it sounds so obvious, but when the lines will continue to be so blurred about what is real and what is AI, I think that grounding in what makes you feel human is a piece of the puzzle.

Christopher [00:21:36]:

The biggest thing that you and I promote is self-awareness. It's knowing thy self. I think that if you can come to peace with who you are, nothing can intimidate you because nothing can replace you. You're not competing with anything. You are you, and you know the value of you. I think self-awareness, unfortunately, is a rare commodity. However, I think it's also the commodity that can save us as human beings.

Heather [00:22:26]:

I appreciate that because one of the things that I want to convey is that I'm not anti-tech. I'm pro the kind of you that algorithms can't predict and that patriarchy can't monetize. And to me, little things to kind of put a glitch in the system that reminds the world of what real looks like. You know, again, I'm always a big advocate of women doing what feels right for them and being free in that choice to do so. And then I also want to encourage us to think of the ways that these systems are shaping the choices that we're making. So, you know, perhaps depending on your comfortability, it's posting something on your social media with no makeup, no filter, just pure you. Or maybe it's, you know, just a reminder of something that isn't picture-perfect. We are so-called upon to be picture-perfect.

Heather [00:23:26]:

So things that break that apart, there's a revolutionary yearning in me for more of that. And I definitely do see that with a lot of women. They're like, they're not going to spend another second trying to be picture-perfect. They're going to hone who they are, what they want to give to the world, and leave the ever-emerging, ever-growing, ever-not-real human expectation in the rear view mirror.

Christopher [00:24:00]:

Yeah, I want to do a quick shout-out to our last guest, Tori Jenae. She suggested three books to us when we spoke to her last time. One of them actually has been suggested by several guests over the last few shows. A few years, actually. And I actually went out and got all three books that she recommended. And the one that pertains specifically to the conversation we're having is by Debbie Ford, The Dark Side of the Light Chasers. It's about the opposite of beauty. It's about the other end of beauty, the ugly in us. And coming to an understanding that that part of us is also very beautiful and important, and facing that side of ourselves, the dark side of ourselves, and being at peace with that as well, and that's what I'm talking about. Getting to know who you are to get, getting to know self, and then being able to express the full range of self, not just what someone has held up as something you should aspire to be, but to be all of you.

Christopher [00:25:21]:

That's basically what we are. The message we're trying to get across, right. When we talk about beauty.

Heather [00:25:29]:

Well, I feel like Ms. AI may be crowned this year, but with what Christopher just said, and really, the heart of the show is a woman who is grounded in self, and not her image. And, you know, for me, that means that real is not, does not mean perfect. It means present. And it's something that no filter, no AI, and no pageant can ever replace.

Christopher [00:25:57]:

But you have to believe that about yourself before it gets out and seeps out into anyone else. It has to be overflowing in you first. So we started an AI conversation. But I'm glad I got back to the real.

Heather [00:26:17]:

It is in our name. So, you know, beauty's definitely going to come out.

Christopher [00:26:23]:

Absolutely. And hey, if you enjoy this conversation, let us know. We'd love to get your perspective, opinions, and thoughts on these topics that are, you know, flooding over us these days. So join in.

Heather [00:26:40]:

Yeah, if you loved it, if it made you think, please let us know. You know, share it. Leave us a review. And we love these conversations to come alive.

Christopher [00:26:49]:

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Heather [00:26:53]:

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Christopher [00:26:56]:

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