AI action figure: turn your photo into a boxed starter pack

The AI starter pack trend in one minute

The “starter pack” started as a meme: a grid of four to six objects that sum up a type of person (“the new runner starter pack”: expensive shoes, a GPS watch, a 5K medal). In spring 2025, when chatbots learned to create images, the meme turned into a toy. People uploaded a selfie and got back a collectible figure of themselves in blister packaging, with the accessories of their job or hobby lined up next to them. The trend spread on LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok, and “AI action figure” even topped the AI trends in Google’s 2025 Year in Search for the United States.

A typical starter pack image has four ingredients:

• the figure: you (or your dog, or a friend who said yes), in toy form;
• the box: a cardboard backing with a clear plastic bubble, in the color of your choice;
• the text: a name and a tagline, such as “Sam, Spreadsheet Hero” or “Weekend Gardener”;
• three to five accessories: the objects that make people smile because they recognize you.

The joke works when the accessories are specific. “A laptop” says nothing. “A laptop covered in stickers, a half-eaten croissant and a phone showing 47 unread messages” tells a story.

What Niki does for you (and what she doesn’t)

Niki is one of the 25 AI coaches at Nation AI, specialized in creating and editing images. For a starter pack, she can:

• create the figure from your photo, or from a description if you’d rather not send one;
• design the packaging: name, tagline, box color, a “Limited Edition” sticker, retro or modern style;
• draw the accessories from what you tell her about your job, hobbies or habits;
• pick the right format: square for a post, portrait for a story or a printed card;
• adjust the image as many times as needed: a different color, a bigger accessory, a corrected name, without starting from scratch;
• make variations: one figure per team member in the same box design, a couple in one box, a pet edition.

What she doesn’t do:

• No promise of a perfect likeness. The figure is inspired by your photo, in toy style. It may look a lot like you or only a little; a sharper photo and one or two more tries usually help.
• No protected brands or characters. No Barbie, Marvel or LEGO packaging, no real company logos: she creates an original box instead.
• No real person without their consent. Niki won’t make an identifiable figure of someone who hasn’t agreed.
• An image, not a toy. She creates a picture, not a physical figure or a 3D file for printing.
• Text can slip. Words inside AI images sometimes come out with a typo. Check your name and tagline, and ask her to fix them.

What to send Niki for a starter pack that looks like you

You don’t need to know how to write a prompt. Niki starts as soon as she has the basics, then you refine together. Send a photo and a few lines following this model:

“Here is my photo. Name on the box: [name + tagline]. Accessories: [3 to 5 objects]. Style: [realistic toy, 3D cartoon, retro 80s]. Box color: [color]. Format: [square, portrait].”

Details that make a difference:

• The photo: face clearly visible, good light, no sunglasses, a plain background if possible. A waist-up or full-length photo helps if you want your outfit on the figure.
• The accessories: three to five, as specific as possible. Your actual coffee mug, your running shoes, the houseplant that refuses to die.
• The text: short. A name and a tagline of two to four words read better on a box than a full sentence.
• The use: say where the image will go (LinkedIn post, birthday card, Instagram story) and Niki chooses the format.

3 mini requests ready to copy

1) The work edition: “Here’s my photo. Make me an action figure in a blister pack. Name on the box: ‘Priya, Data Wizard’. Accessories: a laptop with stickers, a giant coffee mug, noise-cancelling headphones and a sticky note that says ‘Deploy on Friday?’. Realistic toy style, pastel blue box, square format for LinkedIn.”

2) The retirement gift: “This is my dad, and he’s happy to be a toy (photo attached). Create a ‘Retired Legend’ starter pack: a fishing rod, a crossword book, a golf cap and slippers. Retro 1980s toy box in red and yellow, portrait format to print on a card.”

3) The pet edition: “Turn my dog into an action figure (photo attached). Name: ‘Biscuit, Chief Snack Officer’. Accessories: a tennis ball, a chewed slipper, a leash and a jar of treats. Bright yellow box, square format.”

Adjust without starting over

Stay in the same conversation and say only what changes: “make the face closer to my photo”, “bigger accessories”, “green box”, “fix the spelling: Priya, not Priyah”, “add a ‘Limited Edition’ sticker in the top right corner”. Niki edits the image instead of starting again.

Starter pack ideas by occasion

Each idea can be sent to Niki as is, with a photo and three or four details.

At work

• One figure per colleague, same box design, for a team post or a farewell.
• A “New Job Starter Pack” to announce a new role on LinkedIn.
• An “Intern Edition”: a lanyard, a laptop and a tray of coffees for everyone.

Birthdays, anniversaries and farewells

• A “Birthday Edition” figure for a card or the family group chat.
• A couple in one box for an anniversary: two figures and the things you share (the dog, the suitcase, the TV remote).
• A graduation or retirement figure, with the accessories of the next chapter.

Hobbies

• Runner: race bib, GPS watch, energy gels, a medal.
• Gamer: controller, headset, a can of soda, a “Do Not Disturb” sign.
• Home baker: sourdough starter jar, rolling pin, flour-covered apron.
• Gardener: trowel, tomato plants, watering can, a suspiciously large zucchini.

Just for fun

• Your cat or dog as a collectible.
• A “Monday Morning Edition” for the group chat.
• The whole family as a set, each figure with the one object that sums them up.

How to use Nation AI on this page

The chat is at the top of this page, with Niki’s photo. Nothing to install, and no account needed for the trial.

1. Attach your photo with the chat’s image button, then write your request. You can also say it out loud with the chat’s microphone: Niki replies in writing, and with images.
2. Look at the first version: figure, box, text, accessories.
3. Refine in the same conversation until the image is right, then save it to your phone or computer.

Niki only sees what you send her: your photo and your message. The more precise you are about the accessories and the text, the closer the result will be to what you have in mind.

Nation AI runs on GPT models, with Mistral as a backup. It is an independent service, not OpenAI, designed in Rennes and Paris, France, with a team and customer support in France.

Real-life example: it’s a colleague’s last day on Friday. You send Niki a group photo (everyone agreed) and ask for “one box per person, same design, each with their signature object”. She creates the first figure, you settle the style together, then you go through the team one by one.

Pricing: free trial, then paid plans if you need them

The trial is free, with no sign-up: no account, no email, no card. A few free messages are included, enough to try a first figure and see if Niki’s style suits you. For regular use, commitment-free paid plans are available, with the 25 AI coaches and image creation included: all the details are on the pricing page.

Good practices: your face, your rights, your box

• Your own photo, or with permission. Create figures of yourself, or of people who have agreed. Ask before posting a friend or colleague as a toy.
• Think twice with children’s photos. A figure of your child is cute in the family group chat; on a public profile, it’s still a photo of a child online.
• Check the background. Crop out what you wouldn’t post anyway: a work badge, an address, a license plate, a screen with documents.
• No brands or famous characters. Toy packaging, logos and licensed characters are protected. An original box is also more “you”.
• Proofread the box before sharing: name, tagline, spelling.
• Say it’s AI-made when you post, if the platform asks, or if people could take it for a real product.
• Your data: your conversations are not used to train AI, and you can delete your history whenever you want.

Useful links on nation.ai

• Niki’s profile, AI image generator
• AI image generator: create and edit images from text or a photo
• AI image generator from photo: which tools take yours
• Image prompts: 100+ examples to copy
• Edit a photo with AI for free
• Animate an image with AI for free: to bring your figure to life with a video tool.
• The 25 AI assistants of Nation AI
• Nation AI pricing