EXCLUSIVE: Has Meghan Markle (and Lili) Been (Out)-AI'd By a California Children's Clothing Company? – Substack

Something’s fishy out there in California.
Sometimes you see two seemingly separate brands — one a bland, beige “cozy” lifestyle brand with “keepsake” boxes, another a bland, beige “heirloom” children’s clothing brand— and you can’t help but wonder… what the hell is going on here? Is this the same cut-and-paste company?
This is the exact feeling I had while comparing two companies that launched in early 2024: Meghan Markle’s Montecito-based As Ever nonsense to San Francisco-based children’s clothing brand Lil Olives founded by Danya Ghutta.
While one sells “sweet things made slowly, meant to be shared often” in “keepsake boxes, the other sells “heirloom” dresses “inspired by European summers… Made in limited quantities, for the girls who twirl”.
In the descriptions for both supposedly European-inspired brand products (let’s not forget As Ever was initially called “American Riviera Orchard”), are the overuse of the now meaningless AI-loved words of “quiet”, “slow”, “love”, “soft”, etc., etc.
Just look at both of their mission statements, which are almost identical in rhythm and construction.
Meghan’s As Ever About statement reads:
As ever is more than a brand – it’s a love language. Created by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, As ever welcomes you to a collection of products, each inspired by her long-lasting love of cooking, entertaining, and hostessing with ease.
This curated collection has been crafted to elevate your everyday and inspire moments of joy.
For years, I’ve been making jams, preserves, and fruit spreads for friends and family. The feedback from my loved ones was always the same: “Starting my day with your jam makes me feel happy.”
These moments inspired me to dream up something far greater than I could create in my kitchen at home. I asked myself, “What would it take to scale my fruit spreads into something I could share more broadly? Could I adapt my recipe into something that could bring more people that feeling of joy? And what else could I add to this collection to spark a smile, to make your day a bit easier, to elevate your everyday?”
With the support of an amazing team, dedicated focus, and hard work, we made it happen.
As ever, for me, is an extension of how I love. Through thoughtful gestures and small details, I hope this collection brings you as much joy as it does for those I hold close.
And now, here is Ghutta’s mission statement for Lil Olives:
Lil Olives was born from the quiet ache of longing — not just to create, but to leave behind something meaningful.
For years, I worked as an engineer in the world of tech — building systems, solving problems, and living a life that made sense on paper. But somewhere between deadlines and deployments, I felt a soft, persistent tug at my heart. A whisper that said: there’s more you’re meant to build.
When I became a mother, that whisper grew louder. Louder in the quiet moments — during midnight feedings, sweet giggles, and the stillness of nap time. It urged me to build something more soulful, something that reflected who I truly was. I wanted to live on my own terms — to be present for my children not just at the edges of the day, but at the center of it. I didn’t want to choose between purpose and presence. I wanted both.
I searched everywhere for occasion wear that was both beautiful and comfortable for little ones — pieces that felt special without sacrificing ease. When I couldn’t find what I was looking for, I decided to create it myself.
And so, Lil Olives was born.
Lil Olives is our love letter to childhood — a collection of hand-touched heirlooms, made slowly and soulfully in India. Each piece is lovingly crafted by master artisans using the finest fabrics and time-honored embroidery techniques passed down like lullabies.
This is more than a brand. It’s a piece of my heart, a lesson for my children, and a quiet promise to every dreamer: that even the softest dreams can grow strong enough to shape a new kind of life.
For the next generation of little dreamers — wrapped in comfort, woven with love.
Both statements were so similar in tone, content, and (most importantly) in triggering my gag reflex, I decided to run them by their original author, Google’s Gemini/Claude AI.
Gemini said: The (As Ever) text is almost an exact clone of the "Lil Olives" copy you just looked at, simply swapped with a royal branding theme. An AI generator has taken the exact same structural skeleton and "mad-libbed" it for a lifestyle brand… It follows a rigid narrative formula, simply swapping the nouns to fit the specific prompt.
But the photography is where it gets really creepy.

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