T he Socceroos star stares at the camera as he strides through an enormous atrium, the sound of his football boots on polished concrete echoing around him. Suddenly, he spawns four digital clones that peel off out of view to re-emerge in different settings around the world.

This scene from a social media video is fake and generated by artificial intelligence. But it has been authorised by the very real 22-year-old footballer, Cristian Volpato, the latest professional athlete to licence and monetise his AI likeness.

Draped in a white linen suit with his feet on the sand, Volpato’s “synthetic twin” turns towards a photographer as the limestone stacks of the Twelve Apostles tower behind him. Another dominates a large digital billboard wearing a football jersey. One smiles into a mirror while adjusting a sharp grey suit.

This video was produced by a new company that acts as an AI licensing agent for professional athletes.…