It’s the ultra-realistic technology that is sweeping social media, with ‘paparazzi’ photos of celebrities often considered genuine.
Many people are surprised and a little disturbed to discover that images they think are real have actually been created by a computer.
AI-generated images have exploded in recent months, whether it’s celebrities reimagined as retirees or entire exhibitions dedicated to computer-made artworks, much to the fury of human artists.
But can you spot the difference between real and fake?
Take MailOnline’s quiz to see if you can tell which images are genuine and which are AI-generated…
1. Donald Trump arrested
In this image, former US President Donald Trump appears to be trying to flee while being arrested by police officers.
2. Elon Musk dates the CEO of a rival motor company
One image appears to show Tesla CEO Elon Musk holding hands with rival General Motors CEO Mary Barra.
3. Supermodel Bella Hadid turns into a bald robot
Supermodel Bella Hadid, 26, poses as a bald robot in a futuristic image, where metal tubes appear to emerge from her back.
4. Pope Francis opts for an oversized padded jacket
In this image, Pope Francis, 86, changes his style and, instead of the usual robe, opts for an oversized white padded jacket.
5. Britney Spears Floating Necklace
Paris Hilton poses with Britney Spears and Cade Hudson in a snap that appears to show Spears’ necklace held only by a chain.
6. Tom Cruise and his doubles
In this image, actor Tom Cruise, known for playing roles in action films, poses with his doubles.
7. Rita Ora’s reptilian face
In the image below, pop star Rita Ora appears to have skin-colored reptilian features on her face.
8. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg walks the runway
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg struts down the runway wearing a bright pink bomber jacket and matching pants, paired with pink sneakers, a black undercoat, and sunglasses.
9. Billionaire Elon Musk as a child
Tesla and X CEO Elon Musk is photographed as a young child, wearing a white shirt under brown pants and suspenders.
10. Mugshot of former President Donald Trump
Former US President Donald Trump poses for a mugshot, holding a stamp that reads “Fulton County Sheriff’s Office.”
Answers
Which ones did you get right?
1. This photo is fake! An AI-generated image of Donald Trump trying to flee while being arrested by police was posted on Twitter in March with the caption: “Taking pictures of Trump being arrested while awaiting arrest.
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2. This image is fake! This image of Tesla CEO Elon Musk walking hand in hand with Mary Barra, CEO of rival car company General Motors, was generated by AI. After the image was posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, as a “breaking” story, Musk responded by saying that he would “never wear that outfit.
“
3. This image is real! Supermodel Bella Hadid transformed into a bald robot for a futuristic fashion campaign by designer Marc Jacobs. In this image, Hadid poses nude and bald, wearing only a sculptural silver earring with metal trim snaking around it. The fashion brand’s Heaven by Marc Jacobs Fall ’23 campaign was photographed by Carlijn Jacobs and styled by Danielle Emerson.
4. This image is fake! An image of Pope Francis wearing a white puffer jacket instead of his usual robe circulated on social media, but although many people believed it was real, it was actually generated by AI. The viral image was created by Pablo Xavier, a 31-year-old man from Chicago, using Midjourney, an artificial intelligence image generator.
5. This image is real! After posting a photo of herself, Britney Spears and Cade Hudson on Instagram, Paris Hilton had to refute theories that the image was fake. Fans were convinced of this as Britney’s necklace appeared to float with a single chain. In a follow-up comment “for everyone asking,” Paris said the photo was taken with an iPhone to make it look blurry and then edited in an app called Remini to correct that, but that sometimes AI “distorts the images.” . “I didn’t even want to dignify this with an answer,” he added. “But some of these conspiracy theories are absolutely ridiculous.”
6. This image is fake! Despite being known for playing characters who perform daring acts in action movies, this image of Tom Cruise and his stunt doubles is an AI-generated image. Cruise does all of his own stunts.
7. This image is real! Walking the red carpet at the 2022 British Fashion Awards, singer Rita Ora wore striking reptilian facial prosthetics that accurately reflected her skin tone, as well as bleached eyebrows.
8. This image is fake! Many were surprised to see that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg had taken the step into runway modeling, but an image circulating on social media of the tech boss walking down a runway dressed in a bright pink suit was actually generated by AI, using the Midjourney imager. .
9. This image is fake! An image of Elon Musk as a toddler in a brown jumpsuit caused a sensation on social media, but instead of coming from the billionaire’s family archives, it was actually generated by AI. The image was captioned “Elon Musk was reportedly working on an anti-aging formula, but it got out of hand,” which justified a response from Musk himself saying, “Guys, I think maybe I had too much.”
10. This image is real! To the surprise of many on social media, the mug shot of Donald Trump released by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office on August 24 was actually real. Trump was photographed for his police mugshot after his arrest.
