History maker Student wins 'world's first Al pageant' with digital clone

A BRISTOL University graduate has made history after her computer-generated “digital twin” was crowned the winner of the world’s first Avatar Round in the prestigious Miss England contest

- Ed CHATTERTON

Jessica Pliskin, 23, was named the winner of the newly introduced futuristic round, which required beauty queens to create fully animated digital clones of their real-life selves to perform corporate presentations. Contestants were judged on their technical understanding and the potential of their avatars to secure commercial contracts for a technology firm.

Miss England organisers believe they are the first beauty pageant globally to introduce a digital AI round, aiming to “reflect the world” the young women are stepping into.

The contest previously axed its bikini swimwear round to move away from outdated pageant stereotypes, but the divisive new technological element has drawn mixed opinions.

Jessica impressed judges with her “creativity, technical understanding, and vision” and for using the technology to make a “positive impact”.