'Unleash our creativity': Singapore content creators use AI for satirical videos

Witty, satirical Singaporean content is taking centre stage with the help of artificial intelligence and social media.

Following a slew of AI-generated "Italian brainrot" memes early this year, AI-generated short videos set in Singapore have grabbed the attention of many local netizens.

What makes these videos stand out is not just their relatable and humorous nature - it is also the use of AI to generate visuals and audio that resemble how Singaporeans speak, dress, and behave.

For example, clips featuring an orangutan named Kiasu Meng garnered over 2 million views as of press time.

The videos depict a primate living as an average Singaporean, working jobs from a coffee shop drinks stall worker to a supermarket cashier. Utilising everyday scenarios as a setting, they serve up satirical commentary on current affairs.

A chance to unleash creativity

How Chee Lup, 45, is the founder of video production company Luppy Productions and creator of the TikTok account luppysg. His hyperlocal content touches on everyday issues like housing, education, and relationships.

A video titled Straight A's Student, uploaded on June 25, has racked up over a million views and 70,000 likes.

Depending on the complexity, a video takes between two hours and two days to produce, said Mr How, who worked at Mediacorp for two years. He was one of the first video editors to work on news satire sitcom The Noose, which ran from 2007 to 2015.

"Every time there is a complaint, they restrict the content, and eventually it became too safe, and it lost its satirical style of comedy," he lamented in a TikTok video titled Unstoppable AI.

He added in the video: "(AI) has given me, or anyone, the chance to unleash our creativity in a manner that I never, ever imagined possible."

Mr How told The New Paper that his experience of working on The Noose convinced him that there is room for satirical Singaporean content. He was also inspired by Malaysian-American comedian Ronny Chieng and TV shows like South Park.

He hopes to use his account as a platform to teach viewers not to believe everything they see online, as well as to spread awareness on issues he feels strongly about, such as the recent increase in Kpod usage.

'I poke fun at current affairs'

TikTok user rudememesg uploads videos that predominantly feature a "rude auntie" in Singapore. As the TikToker's username suggests, most of the videos are sprinkled with commonly used local expletives delivered in a Singaporean accent.

The account is the brainchild of a media consultant in his 40s who only wanted to be known as MW.

Since he began uploading AI content in July, his videos have accumulated over four million views and 182,000 likes as of press time.

"I use AI to generate unapologetic local content for the everyday Singaporean to enjoy. I poke fun at current affairs and whatever is happening on our sunny island," he told TNP.

MW acknowledged the less family-friendly nature of his videos, but maintained that he prefers to stick to his style.

The account was created after he saw AI-generated Singlish videos and was inspired to come up with his rendition, with inspiration derived from observing his surroundings. "My dialogue seems frivolous, but some of the issues are very real."

Single-scene videos take less than five minutes to generate, but the technology has its limitations, said MW, and requires more effort at times.

"Don't take (my videos) too seriously - living in Singapore is stressful enough. Come enjoy the jokes. It's not all swearing, I swear," he added.

'What if our national icon, Ah Meng, was just trying to survive modern Singapore?'

Daryl Kang, 40, is the creator behind mengonthemove, which stars an orangutan in realistic local settings.

"Honestly, I was tired of seeing the same kind of content online. I wanted something uniquely local, but still universal in humour," said Mr Kang, an adjunct trainer at FirstCom Academy specialising in digital marketing, content creation, and AI integration.

He told TNP that his interest in creating AI-generated videos started as a joke between friends last year. He later found his niche and came up with the character Kiasu Meng.

"He represents that everyday uncle we all know. The one with loud opinions, no filter, but somehow always makes sense in his own way. It's satire wrapped in fur."

Mr Kang comes up with a rough concept and uses AI to help refine the idea before putting it through the software to generate visuals. The whole process can take as little as five minutes.

He shared that most of the feedback has been positive, and was heartened to see viewers being able to relate to his content.

When asked what he hoped viewers could take away from his videos, he quipped: "Maybe we shouldn't take life too seriously."

It's not free

Creating AI videos does not come free - all three creators TNP spoke to use Google's Veo 3 to generate their videos.

On its website, Veo 3 offers three monthly subscription tiers at US$37.50 (S$48), US$75, and US$150. Each tier comes with a different number of credits per month: 7,500, 18,000, and 40,000, respectively.

An eight-second text-to-video creation with a "fast" setting costs 300 credits, while a video with a "quality" setting costs 1,200 credits.

Mr How spends about $20 per video, and has spent around $500 since dipping his toes into AI videos in June.

MW paid $300 for an annual plan, while Mr Kang has spent under $100 in total since June. The latter said that he tries to keep it cost-effective as he believes that creativity is more important than big budgets.

Not everybody is on board

Though many find the satirical videos enjoyable, some dislike the prevalence of generative AI content online. The technology has also drawn flak for its social and environmental impact.

Isabelle Tan, a 19-year-old media studies student, said that she comes across such AI-generated video content on Instagram and TikTok with "every few scrolls, every day".

Though she finds some of the videos funny, she does not like the idea of AI media. "Since there aren't faces tied directly to them, people can produce whatever they want and get away with it."

She added: "With how realistic some of these AI videos look, it could cause misunderstandings and the spread of fake news easily in the long run."

Teo Yan Ting, a 21-year-old political science student, told TNP that while such videos do not appeal to her sense of humour, she is more concerned about the consequences of generative AI.

"I don't really like that people are using AI to make such videos, as I think that it downplays and discredits actual artists. It takes time and effort to create art, but with just a click of a button, anyone can make 'art' now.

"This type of AI content is likely to be quite environmentally taxing as well. Considering how ChatGPT uses gallons of water just to generate a prompt, I can't imagine how much water it takes to generate a whole video."

MW of rudememesg told TNP that AI usage should involve transparency, adding that he uses hashtags to label his content as AI.

"It's all about transparency, isn't it? It's a problem if you use it to mislead, create fake news. But if all AI-generated content comes with AI labels, I don't think there is a problem."

Mr How of luppysg understood the concerns behind AI usage as he once lost a client to AI. However, he likened the situation to the shift from traditional to digital media.

"So now, it's like another shift. You can hate it, but we can't stop it," he said. "If I can't stop this shift, I might as well dive deep into it."