极度深寒

在北京时间8月13日晚举行的WTT瑞典大满贯焦点战中，国乒唯一一对男双组合林诗栋/温瑞博以0比3脆败于法国勒布伦兄弟。         The Girl Who Was FiredA virtual AI actress has gathered massive followers and stirred widespread heated debate on Chinese social media - unlike conventional celebrities, this breakout star is entirely artificially generated.
Fang Taozi, an AI-generated character who stars in the hit AI short drama series The Girl Who Was Fired, has posted lifestyle vlogs, launched social media accounts, shared her breakfasts, workouts and pets, landed brand deals and has a fanbase.
Since the drama debuted on short video platform Douyin on June 12, it has accumulated 200 million views. Fang's Douyin account has attracted more than 400,000 followers.
Fans interact with her as if she were a real celebrity, creating fan edits, discussing fictional relationships and building a community around her imagined life.
This raises a question that has become increasingly urgent for the entertainment industry: Does Fang Taozi represent the first generation of AI celebrities? The answer depends on how "celebrity" is defined, said Zhang Peng, a cultural researcher and associate professor at Nanjing Normal University, in an interview.
If celebrity status is measured by public attention, emotional connection and commercial value, Fang appears to meet many of the criteria. She has fans, a personal brand and even advertising opportunities. 
Whether AI can truly become stars depends not on the technology itself, but on their ability to forge genuine emotional connections with audiences and sustain their appeal over time, added Zhang. 
However, Shi Wenxue, a Beijing-based cultural critic, argues that AI stars have indeed emerged, but they should be viewed as part of the broader lineage of virtual idols.
From the 1958 US virtual musical group Alvin and the Chipmunks to Hatsune Miku, Luo Tianyi and the hyper-realistic digital human Liu Yexi, virtual performers have existed in various forms for decades. 
From the perspective of how she is created, Fang Taozi represents a technological advance. Her emergence is largely a product of the current economic environment of the film and television industry.
The rise of AI performers has also triggered concerns among human actors, especially those working in smaller productions.
Human performers bring personal experience, emotional interpretation and unpredictability - qualities that remain difficult to reproduce. But for industries that require large volumes of affordable content, AI characters offer obvious advantages: They do not age, can work continuously and can be customized for different audiences.
AI short dramas are cheaper, faster and free from the risks associated with human performers, raising concerns over the future of lower-level entertainment jobs in areas such as short dramas, advertising, background acting and voice work, said Zhang.
In Shi's view, beneath the debate lies a familiar tension: technological efficiency versus the threat of displacement for human workers.
The question is not whether AI will completely replace actors, but which parts of acting and entertainment can be automated, he noted.
Rather than presenting an AI figure only as a digital image, Chinese platforms appear to be building complete entertainment ecosystems around AI characters, including dramas, social accounts, fan interactions and commercial partnerships.
China's AI stars have grown out of the audience's desire for emotional companionship, while Hollywood's AI experiments have been shaped by industry battles over efficiency and costs, noted Zhang. 
According to Shi, Fang Taozi's sudden popularity is, in many ways, a reflection of audience psychology. Whether they are moviegoers, fans or casual viewers, audiences have grown weary of formulaic content, scripted fan service, predictable performances and fragile celebrity personas. An idol like Fang Taozi offers an alternative: She cannot be involved in scandals, play diva or break character, and her persona can be adjusted to meet audience demands. But the model also comes with risks, particularly the limitations of its creators and the potential for excessive commercialization.
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B | 由于个人积分优势，他俩成为赛会头号男双，却无缘四强，显然这个成绩无法令看官们满意。在一个月后的名古屋亚运会上，林诗栋/温瑞博将为国而战，这不由令人担忧。

C | 林诗栋/温瑞博0比3不敌法国组合勒布伦兄弟，止步八强本站比赛是这对国乒男双组合在亚运会前最后一次赛场练兵。前一日，他们苦战五局险胜瑞典组合卡尔森/卡尔伯格晋级八强，但接着面对配合默契的勒布伦兄弟，国乒组合几乎没有还手之力，仅耗时23分钟就以9比11、7比11、6比11脆败。这场失利引发网友热议，球迷们“不理解”和“不明白”国乒为什么选择他俩出战亚运会。其实，这只是林诗栋和温瑞博第二次搭档站上国际赛场，此前一次就要追溯至2023年世界青年乒乓球锦标赛上，他俩一举登顶男双赛场。

D | 今年6月，亚运会名单公布，这对组合意外出现在两对亚运男双之列。此后他们出战了7月在长沙举行的全锦赛双打比赛，不敌广东队的林高远/袁烜松止步八强；另一对亚运男双黄友政/向鹏成绩稍好，在决赛中不敌马龙/许昕屈居全锦赛亚军。在亚运会名单公布之时，总教练秦志戬表示：“在男双和女双项目上，球队综合考虑夺金牌和谋长远的双重目标，希望借助亚运会平台对新的双打组合开展实战演练。”而林诗栋和温瑞博作为国乒男队内单打排名前三的选手，被教练组予以了用大赛磨合双打的机会。林诗栋、温瑞博在国乒男队内单打排名前三此前，林诗栋更长时间与同龄队友黄友政磨合男双。这对“一左一右”的搭档自去年美国大满贯起频繁配对，除了在马斯喀特常规挑战赛上唯一一次登顶之外，他俩多次打进决赛，这一年来已经获得了五个男双亚军（去年瑞典大满贯、今年新加坡大满贯、太原常规挑战赛、萨格热布常规挑战赛、美国大满贯），不得不说林诗栋/黄友政这对组合也存在一定瓶颈。如今将他俩拆队是一次新的尝试，但尝试也需要付出一定代价，而这学费国乒还是交得起的。

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