Abstract

The rapid development of live-streaming e-commerce is reshaping consumer shopping behavior, particularly among university students. At the same time, the emergence of AI virtual influencers has opened new avenues for digital marketing in the fashion industry. However, existing research is insufficient to clarify how AI virtual influencers influence university students’ purchase intentions in live-streaming e-commerce. To address this gap, this study analyzes the impact of AI virtual influencers on university students’ purchase intentions and employs the SOR (Stimulus-Organism-Response) model to examine the mediating role of perceived value and the moderating role of consumer skepticism. A quantitative survey was conducted with 393 local and international university students in first-tier Chinese cities who had experienced fashion livestream shopping on Douyin. The results show that the attractiveness, similarity, and perceived realism of AI Virtual Influencers all positively influence consumers’ perceived value, with perceived realism having the most significant effect. Perceived value can further enhance consumers’ purchase intentions and mediate the relationship between some AI virtual anchor characteristics and purchase intentions. Meanwhile, the moderating effect of consumers’ skepticism toward AI is not significant in this study's model. These findings enrich the research on AI Virtual Influencers and consumer behavior in live-streaming e-commerce and provide practical insights for fashion brands to optimize AI virtual anchor design and improve the live-streaming shopping experience for young consumers.

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