Artificial Intelligence-Powered Digital Streamers in Online Retail: Empirical Insights and Design Strategies from Experiments

References

• Adam M, Wessel M, Benlian A (2021) AI-based chatbots in customer service and their effects on user compliance. Electronic Markets 31(2):427–445.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Alabed A, Javornik A, Gregory-Smith D (2022) AI anthropomorphism and its effect on users’ self-congruence and self-AI integration: A theoretical framework and research agenda. Tech. Forecasting Soc. Change 182:121786.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Alizila S (2020) What is Taobao Live? Accessed December 14, 2024, https://www.alizila.com/video/what-is-taobao-live/.Google Scholar
• Ameen N, Cheah JH, Ali F, El-Manstrly D, Kulyciute R (2024) Risk, trust, and the roles of human versus virtual influencers. J. Travel Res. 63(6):1370–1394.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Bailenson JN, Yee N, Blascovich J, Guadagno RE (2008) Transformed social interaction in mediated interpersonal communication. Konijn EA, Utz S, Tanis M, Barnes SB, eds. Mediated Interpersonal Communication (Routledge, New York), 77–99.Google Scholar
• Bharadwaj N, Ballings M, Naik PA, Moore M, Arat MM (2022) A new livestream retail analytics framework to assess the sales impact of emotional displays. J. Marketing 86(1):27–47.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Blascovich J, Loomis J, Beall AC, Swinth KR, Hoyt CL, Bailenson JN (2002) Immersive virtual environment technology as a methodological tool for social psychology. Psych. Inquiry 13(2):103–124.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Cao Y, Li S, Liu Y, Yan Z, Dai Y, Yu PS, Sun L (2023) A comprehensive survey of AI-generated content (AIGC): A history of generative AI from GAN to ChatGPT. Preprint, submitted March 7, http://arxiv.org/abs/2303.04226.Google Scholar
• Cascio Rizzo GL, Berger JA, Villarroel Ordenes F (2023) What drives virtual influencer’s impact? Preprint, submitted January 19, http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4329150.Google Scholar
• Chen H, Shao B, Yang X, Kang W, Fan W (2024) Avatars in live streaming commerce: The influence of anthropomorphism on consumers’ willingness to accept virtual live streamers. Comput. Human Behav. 156:108216.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Cheng C, Hu Y, Lu Y, Hong Y (2019) Everyone can be a star: Understanding the role of live video streaming in online retail. Preprint, submitted July 19, http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3422615.Google Scholar
• China Daily (2022) Virtual livestreamers a new trend. Accessed March 20, 2024, https://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202205/28/WS6291847aa310fd2b29e5f857.html.Google Scholar
• Epley N, Waytz A, Cacioppo JT (2007) On seeing human: A three-factor theory of anthropomorphism. Psych. Rev. 114(4):864–886.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Expert Panel (2024) Council post: How foundation models can help businesses better leverage AI. Forbes (October 11), https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbestechcouncil/2024/10/11/how-foundation-models-can-help-businesses-better-leverage-ai/.Google Scholar
• Feine J, Gnewuch U, Morana S, Maedche A (2019) A taxonomy of social cues for conversational agents. Internat. J. Human-Comput. Stud. 132:138–161.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Gao W, Jiang N, Guo Q (2023) How do virtual streamers affect purchase intention in the live streaming context? A presence perspective. J. Retailing Consumer Services 73:103356.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Gao X, Xu XY, Tayyab SMU, Li Q (2021) How the live streaming commerce viewers process the persuasive message: An ELM perspective and the moderating effect of mindfulness. Electronic Commerce Res. Appl. 49:101087.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Go E, Sundar SS (2019) Humanizing chatbots: The effects of visual, identity and conversational cues on humanness perceptions. Comput. Human Behav. 97:304–316.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Gordon N (2024) CEOs share how AI is shaking up the workforce—Including an instance of “robots outcompeting humans in real time.” Fortune (November 14), https://fortune.com/2024/11/14/ai-changing-workforce-chinese-livestreamers/.Google Scholar
• Guo T, Sriram S, Manchanda P (2020) “Let the sunshine in”: The impact of industry payment disclosure on physician prescription behavior. Marketing Sci. 39(3):516–539.Link, Google Scholar
• Hu H-h, Ma F (2023) Human-like bots are not humans: The weakness of sensory language for virtual streamers in livestream commerce. J. Retailing Consumer Services 75:103541.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Huang T-Y, Johari R, McKeown N, Trunnell M, Watson M (2014) A buffer-based approach to rate adaptation: Evidence from a large video streaming service. ACM SIGCOMM Comput. Comm. Rev. 44(4):187–198.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Hughes MÜ, Bendoni WK, Pehlivan E (2016) Storygiving as a co-creation tool for luxury brands in the age of the internet: A love story by Tiffany and thousands of lovers. J. Product Brand Management 25(4):357–364.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Kim Y, Krishnan R (2015) On product-level uncertainty and online purchase behavior: An empirical analysis. Management Sci. 61(10):2449–2467.Link, Google Scholar
• Krijestorac H, Garg R, Mahajan V (2020) Cross-platform spillover effects in consumption of viral content: A quasi-experimental analysis using synthetic controls. Inform. Systems Res. 31(2):449–472.Link, Google Scholar
• Leadleo (2022) Meta-Universe series briefing report: What is the application prospect of virtual digital human in e-commerce broadcast area? Accessed August 15, 2025, https://www.leadleo.com/report/reading/61c920c15774731d8f171ff2?target=3.Google Scholar
• Lee J, Lee D (2023) User perception and self-disclosure towards an AI psychotherapy chatbot according to the anthropomorphism of its profile picture. Telematics Informatics 85:102052.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Li Y, Gan Z, Zheng B (2025) How do artificial intelligence chatbots affect customer purchase? Uncovering the dual pathways of anthropomorphism on service evaluation. Inform. Systems Frontiers 27(1):283–300.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Li F-L, Zhao Z, Lu Q, Lin X, Chen H, Chen B, Pu L, et al. (2021) AliMe avatar: Multi-modal content production and presentation for live-streaming e-commerce. SIGIR‘21 Proc. 44th Internat. ACM SIGIR Conf. Res. Development Inform. Retrieval (Association for Computing Machinery, New York), 2635–2636.Google Scholar
• Lin Y, Yao D, Chen X (2021) Happiness begets money: Emotion and engagement in live streaming. J. Marketing Res. 58(3):417–438.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Liu W, Jiang M, Li W, Mou J (2024) How does the anthropomorphism of AI chatbots facilitate users’ reuse intention in online health consultation services? The moderating role of disease severity. Tech. Forecasting Soc. Change 203:123407.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Lu S, Yao D, Chen X, Grewal R (2021) Do larger audiences generate greater revenues under pay what you want? Evidence from a live streaming platform. Marketing Sci. 40(5):964–984.Link, Google Scholar
• Luo X, Tong S, Fang Z, Qu Z (2019) Frontiers: Machines vs. humans: The impact of artificial intelligence chatbot disclosure on customer purchases. Marketing Sci. 38(6):937–947.Abstract, Google Scholar
• McKinsey & Company (2024) CEOs and experts share how AI is shaking up the workforce—Including an instance of “robots outcompeting humans in real time.” Accessed December 3, 2024, https://fortune.com/2024/11/14/ai-changing-workforce-chinese-livestreamers/.Google Scholar
• Miao F, Kozlenkova IV, Wang H, Xie T, Palmatier RW (2022) An emerging theory of avatar marketing. J. Marketing 86(1):67–90.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Moon Y (2003) Don’t blame the computer: When self-disclosure moderates the self-serving bias. J. Consumer Psych. 13(1–2):125–137.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Nass C, Moon Y (2000) Machines and mindlessness: Social responses to computers. J. Soc. Issues 56(1):81–103.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Nguyen M, Casper Ferm LE, Quach S, Pontes N, Thaichon P (2023) Chatbots in frontline services and customer experience: An anthropomorphism perspective. Psych. Marketing 40(11):2201–2225.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Parboteeah DV, Valacich JS, Wells JD (2009) The influence of website characteristics on a consumer’s urge to buy impulsively. Inform. Systems Res. 20(1):60–78.Link, Google Scholar
• Pelau C, Dabija DC, Ene I (2021) What makes an AI device human-like? The role of interaction quality, empathy and perceived psychological anthropomorphic characteristics in the acceptance of artificial intelligence in the service industry. Comput. Human Behav. 122:106855.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Qiu L, Benbasat I (2009) Evaluating anthropomorphic product recommendation agents: A social relationship perspective to designing information systems. J. Management Inform. Systems 25(4):145–181.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Rietz F, Sutherland A, Bensch S, Wermter S, Hellström T (2021) WoZ4U: An open-source wizard-of-oz interface for easy, efficient and robust HRI experiments. Frontiers Robotics AI 8:668057.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Schanke S, Burtch G, Ray G (2021) Estimating the impact of “humanizing” customer service chatbots. Inform. Systems Res. 32(3):736–751.Link, Google Scholar
• Schillaci CE, de Cosmo LM, Piper L, Nicotra M, Guido G (2024) Anthropomorphic chatbots’ for future healthcare services: Effects of personality, gender, and roles on source credibility, user satisfaction, and intention to use. Tech. Forecasting Soc. Change 199:123025.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Schuetzler RM, Grimes GM, Scott Giboney J (2020) The impact of chatbot conversational skill on engagement and perceived humanness. J. Management Inform. Systems 37(3):875–900.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Seymour M, Yuan LI, Riemer K, Dennis AR (2025) Less artificial, more intelligent: Understanding affinity, trustworthiness, and preference for digital humans. Inform. Systems Res. 36(2):1096–1128.Link, Google Scholar
• Short J, Williams E, Christie B (1976) The Social Psychology of Telecommunications (Wiley, London).Google Scholar
• Song M, Zhu Y, Xing X, Du J (2024) The double-edged sword effect of chatbot anthropomorphism on customer acceptance intention: The mediating roles of perceived competence and privacy concerns. Behav. Inform. Tech. 43(15):3593–3615.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Tsai W-HS, Liu Y, Chuan C-H (2021) How chatbots’ social presence communication enhances consumer engagement: The mediating role of parasocial interaction and dialogue. J. Res. Interactive Marketing 15(3):460–482.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Wang M, Shan G, Thatcher J (2022) Human versus AI? Investigating the heterogeneous effects of live streaming e-commerce. Proc. AMCIS 2022 (Association for Information Systems, Minnesota), 1172–1179.Google Scholar
• Wang W, Yang M, Sun T (2023) Human-AI co-creation in product ideation: The dual view of quality and diversity. Preprint, submitted December 20, http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4668241.Google Scholar
• Wang Y, Ramachandran V, Liu Sheng OR (2021) Do fit opinions matter? The impact of fit context on online product returns. Inform. Systems Res. 32(1):268–289.Link, Google Scholar
• Wongkitrungrueng A, Dehouche N, Assarut N (2020) Live streaming commerce from the sellers’ perspective: Implications for online relationship marketing. J. Marketing Management 36(5–6):488–518.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Wu R, Liu J, Chen S, Tong X (2023) The effect of e-commerce virtual live streamer socialness on consumers’ experiential value: An empirical study based on Chinese e-commerce live streaming studios. J. Res. Interactive Marketing 17(5):714–733.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Xu Y (2017) Generalized synthetic control method: Causal inference with interactive fixed effects models. Political Anal. 25(1):57–76.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Xu X, Liu J (2022) Artificial intelligence humor in service recovery. Ann. Tourism Res. 95:103439.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Xu Y, Dai H, Yan W (2024) Identity disclosure and anthropomorphism in voice chatbot design: A field experiment. Management Sci., ePub ahead of print August 26, https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.03833.Link, Google Scholar
• Yang S, Xiong G (2019) Try it on! Contingency effects of virtual fitting rooms. J. Management Inform. Systems 36(3):789–822.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Yao R, Qi G, Wu Z, Sun H, Sheng D (2024) Digital human calls you dear: How do customers respond to virtual streamers’ social-oriented language in e-commerce livestreaming? A stereotyping perspective. J. Retailing Consumer Services 79:103872.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Yim A, Cui AP, Walsh M (2024) The role of cuteness on consumer attachment to artificial intelligence agents. J. Res. Interactive Marketing 18(1):127–141.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Youn K, Cho M (2023) Business types matter: New insights into the effects of anthropomorphic cues in AI chatbots. J. Services Marketing 37(8):1032–1045.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Zhang M, Liu Y, Wang Y, Zhao L (2022) How to retain customers: Understanding the role of trust in live streaming commerce with a socio-technical perspective. Comput. Human Behav. 127:107052.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Zhang W, Liu C, Ming L, Cheng Y (2024) The sales impacts of traffic acquisition promotion in live-streaming commerce. Production Oper. Management, ePub ahead of print February 5, https://doi.org/10.1177/10591478231224938.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Zhou X, Yan X, Jiang Y (2024) Making sense? The sensory-specific nature of virtual influencer effectiveness. J. Marketing 88(4):84–106.Crossref, Google Scholar
• Zierau N, Hildebrand C, Bergner A, Busquet F, Schmitt A, Marco Leimeister J (2023) Voice bots on the frontline: Voice-based interfaces enhance flow-like consumer experiences & boost service outcomes. J. Acad. Marketing Sci. 51(4):823–842.Crossref, Google Scholar