What is the action figure trend?
The action figure trend, also known as the “Barbie Box Challenge” or “ChatGPT Action Figure Trend,” is a viral social media phenomenon that emerged in early 2025. It involves users creating AI-generated images of themselves as collectible action figures or dolls, complete with personalized packaging and accessories that reflect their personality, interests, or profession. Powered primarily by OpenAI’s ChatGPT and its image generation model (DALL·E, integrated into GPT-4o), the trend has taken over platforms like Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn, with thousands of users, brands, and even public figures participating.
My AS400 Action Figure
Back in the late 1980’s, fresh out of 6th Form College my younger self stumbled into the world of IBM programming after applying for a summer job in the warehouse and being told “Your forklift skills are terrible, ever thought of using computers?“. Once I realised it paid more money of course I said, “YES where do I apply?“
My iSeries Action Figure
Ten year later, hundreds of hours of training courses, thousands of cans of jolt cola and an entire forest decimated by my printed program list requirements – I moved to the new generation of machines. The venerable IBM iSeries now ready for this new thing called “The Internet”
My IBM i Action Figure
Now, nearly 30 years later (*cough* seriously how can it be that long?!?) I’m lucky enough to be working on the next generation the IBM POWER SYSTEM running the IBM i Operating system which is fully backwards compatible to the old AS400 and iSeries machines. Still passionate about programming and all things IBM i. Older, grayer, portlier but still smiling at this new AI driven technology.
How It Works
- Process: Users upload a clear photo (preferably full-body) to ChatGPT or another AI image generator and provide a detailed text prompt. The prompt typically instructs the AI to create an action figure in a blister pack or toy box, specifying details like the figure’s appearance, accessories (e.g., laptops, pets, sports equipment), packaging design, and text (e.g., name and title on the box).
- Example prompt: “Create a 3D action figure of me based on this photo, in a transparent blister pack. Include my name ‘[Your Name]’ at the top and ‘Content Creator’ below. Add accessories like a camera, notebook, and coffee mug. Use a colorful, retro toy style.”
- Output: The AI generates a hyper-realistic image of the user as a plastic doll, packaged like a collectible toy, often mimicking the aesthetic of Barbie or Marvel action figures from the 1990s/2000s.
- Sharing: Users share these images on social media with hashtags like #ActionFigureTrend or #BarbieBoxChallenge, sparking engagement and inspiring others to join.
Key Features
- Customization: The figures are highly personalized, with accessories reflecting the user’s hobbies, job, or lifestyle (e.g., a gavel for a politician, a sketchbook for an artist).
- Nostalgia: The trend taps into retro toy culture, evoking the glossy packaging of classic action figures or Barbie dolls.
- Accessibility: Available to free and paid ChatGPT users, though free accounts are limited to three image generations per day.
Cultural Impact
- Popularity: The trend gained traction after ChatGPT’s image generation rollout in March 2025, with a spike in traffic (184.4 million global visits on April 9, 2025). Celebrities, politicians (e.g., Marjorie Taylor Greene), and brands like Royal Mail and Mario Badescu have joined in.
- LinkedIn Presence: Marketers and professionals on LinkedIn have used it for engagement, often creating “boring” figures with corporate accessories like lanyards or coffee cups.
- Predecessors: It follows other AI-driven trends like Studio Ghibli-style portraits, showing the growing role of generative AI in digital self-expression.
Want to try it yourself?
For my IBM i Action Figure I went to https://sora.chatgpt.com/ and told it what to draw and uploaded a selfie from my phone. It’s that simple:
- Go to Chat GPT – https://sora.chatgpt.com/
- Take this text and fill it in for yourself “Create a toy of the person in the photo. Let it be an action figure wearing a retro blue suit, black digital watch and young appearance. Next to the figure, there should be the toy’s equipment, each in its individual blisters. 1) name your accessory 2) name your accessory 3) name your accessory 4) name your accessory. Don’t repeat the equipment under any circumstance. The card holding the blister should be strong your colour. Also, on top of the box, write ‘your name’ and underneath it, ‘your job title’. The figure and equipment must all be inside blisters. Visualize this in a realistic way.“
- Click the + sign and upload your selfie avatar
- Click GO and sit back with a smug look on your face
Hope you have some fun!