The Effect of AI Virtual Influencers on Purchase Intention: The Mediating Role of Parasocial Interaction: A Field Study on the Fashion Industry in Egypt

The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of AI virtual influencers (VIs); in terms of perceived authenticity and perceived anthropomorphism on Purchase intention, viewing the mediating role of Parasocial interaction, by application on the women fashion industry in Egypt. Questionnaire was used to collect data, and a non-probability purposive sampling technique was adopted. A total of 128 responses were collected and analyzed. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was performed in R using the SEMinR package (version 2.5.0). The findings supported all the proposed direct and indirect hypotheses, concluding that perceived authenticity and anthropomorphism play a vital role in directly influencing purchase intention, and that parasocial interaction also plays an indirect role in mediating this relationship.