People Are Selling Their Faces to AI for $15-$700 to Fuel China's Booming $2.3B Industry

China's booming AI industry has given rise to an unusual new market: people being paid to license their faces for AI-generated entertainment. AI-generated microdramas are rapidly reshaping China's booming short-form entertainment industry. Producers are increasingly licensing real people's faces to make AI-generated characters look more distinctive and lifelike.

To achieve that, companies pay contributors for permission to use their facial likenesses to generate digital characters. Although the trend gives a new way for people to profit from their personal identities, it also sparks concerns about ownership and control. After a face is uploaded into an AI licensing platform, can its owner ever truly regain control?

Faces Become the New AI Stock Photos

A new stock image economy is emerging. Rather than photos, the product is people's faces. Platforms such as ActID and New Claw allow creators to browse licensed faces by age, gender, appearance, and personality.

Some contributors have reportedly earned as much as 5,000 yuan (about US$700) by licensing their likenesses for AI-generated microdramas and digital characters. On ActID, licensing fees range from 99 yuan to 500 yuan (about US$15 to US$70) per episode, and the platform takes a 10% commission. New Claw charges at least 500 yuan (about US$70) per image and allows contributors to control how their likenesses are used.

It's still a small market, but it's growing fast. ActID had about 800 users, 300 licensed faces, and 10 likenesses used in AI dramas. The niche is growing alongside China's booming AI microdrama industry, where more than 10,000 AI-generated animated microdramas have been released each month since early 2026. It mirrors the rapid rise of China's AI microdrama sector, with the comic-style market reaching roughly 16.8B yuan (about US$2.3B) in 2025.

A Chance to Make Money or Lose Control Forever

For some, face licensing is a way to cash in on the AI boom rather than compete with it. Supporters say the licensed marketplaces provide a more transparent alternative to AI companies that scrape publicly available images without consent. However, critics say that consent doesn't always mean control.

In Shanghai, Xu Fang, a 21-year-old model, was presented with the opportunity to sell his face, but he declined. He has already sued a Chinese fashion brand in court, claiming that his image was used on products without his permission.

'If I license my face, I have no idea how AI might eventually change it or whether it could portray me in degrading ways,' Fang said. His concerns highlight a growing debate: people may approve one use of their face but have little say on how it will be used in the future.

China's AI Face Boom Fuels a Growing Legal Battle

The rise of AI-generated content has also sparked a growing number of disputes over digital identities. The Guangzhou Internet Court has reportedly handled about 700 disputes involving AI-generated likenesses over the past three years. Chinese courts have responded by publishing model cases on how existing portrait rights laws apply to AI-generated content.

The Actor Committee of the China Radio and Television Social Organisations Association warned that AI face-swapping, voice cloning, and unauthorised AI training on people's images and voices infringe performers' rights. It also called for stronger safeguards.

Selling your face could be a new and attractive way to make money in China's booming AI entertainment industry. However, a face is more than just a digital asset. It is about identity, reputation, and self-control. Once facial data enters an AI system, maintaining control over how that likeness is reused can become increasingly difficult.