Artificial intelligence is already reshaping the online world (in a largely negative and shitty way), but one of YouTube’s biggest gear personalities says the latest development crosses an alarming new line. As it seems to do like, every single week.
“It was directly ripping me off”
Guitarist and content creator Rhett Shull has revealed that an AI-generated YouTube channel is now using his videos to create false content that uses his appearance, style and production while publishing misleading guitar content.
The channel in question – Guitar Gems with Chase – reportedly amassed more than 5,000 subscribers and over 600,000 views within a month, prompting concerns over how easily AI-generated creators can gain traction on the platform.
Shull first learned about the channel after being tagged in a social media post by The Bad Guitarist Podcast: “Okay, so last night I was on Instagram and I got tagged in a story by the Bad Guitarist Podcast. It says, ‘This week we take a look at an AI guitar YouTube channel that popped up in the last month and has over 5,000 subs, 600,000 views, and a ton of comments from unsuspecting viewers.'”
He continued: “This is an AI YouTube channel that is directly ripping me off in several different ways.”
In the video, an AI presenter appears in a set modeled after the backdrop Shull used between 2018 and 2021, wears clothing closely resembling outfits from his older videos and even showcases guitars and gear similar to those featured on his channel.
“If you’ve been watching my channel since before 2021, you should recognize this background,” Shull explains. “This is the old set… This creator is wearing a jacket that’s pretty clearly modeled after this jacket, which I used to wear in my videos all the time.”
“There’s no question that this is someone, some content farm, or some person somewhere, who’s feeding my videos to some sort of AI and having it spit out this content.”
Beyond imitation, Shull says the videos spread false claims
While the visual similarities were unsettling enough, Shull says the content itself raised even bigger concerns. He points to videos claiming that companies including Gibson, Fender and PRS manufacture identical guitars in China before selling them at inflated prices under different branding — claims he describes as objectively false.
“What this video is claiming is that a company like Gibson or, later, Fender and PRS… are ripping you off because they’re using the same machines and building the same guitars, but in China,” he says. “It’s completely wrong information; it’s false.”
Shull argues that if he personally published such claims, he could face legal consequences for defamation or slander. But because the content is presented by an AI-generated personality, accountability appears far less clear.
AI channels are already selling guitar products
The channel isn’t simply chasing views, either. According to Shull, it’s also promoting paid guitar buying guides and educational material, including a “$27” downloadable “4-in-1” course covering topics such as “The Honest Guitar Buyer’s Guide 2026” and “The Ultimate Beginner Gear Setup.”
Shull believes these products are likely AI-generated as well, raising further questions about monetization and consumer trust.
And just on a purely personal note as someone who enjoys creating music-related content and music itself, this sucks because it strikes fear into the hearts of everyone that wants to post content online. Got a good idea? That shit is about to be ripped off by slop farms probably instantly, and it might even eclipse you.
Though I think Shull summed it up pretty nicely, in terms of both distrust of YouTube and a pretty fucking bleak future: “Why has this been allowed to go on for over a month to generate hundreds and hundreds of thousands of views, to bring in 5,000 subscribers, and to monetize?
“YouTube doesn’t seem to really have our backs here, both from the creator perspective and from the viewer perspective. Again, people are watching this thinking that it’s real and then being funneled to buy a product that is equally as fake.
He continued: “I feel like this is a losing battle. The better these AI tools get at making videos and creating this kind of content, the more prevalent these type of slop channels are going to be on the platform. And that sucks, man.”
