Debunking Venezuela Victory Videos and AI Images of Maduro.
Computer-created pictures claiming to portray Nicolás Maduro detained following his apprehension by the US have amassed many millions of views on social media.
How AI Images of the President Emerged Soon After
Initial fabricated AI image seemingly showing him taken off a plane surfaced shortly after. The picture was unpublished by any authoritative American sources; rather, it was posted on the platform X by an account describing itself as an “AI video art enthusiast”.
We’ve checked the SynthID tool, which found the image was created or altered with Google AI.
More synthetic images started circulating in the subsequent period, seemingly depicting different views of the leader in custody. Noticeable watermarks on the graphics indicate they were posted by an Instagram account named ultravfx.
SynthID says all of these images were similarly produced using Google AI.
Real Photo Released but Fabrications Persisted
The former US president shared the genuine photograph of Nicolás Maduro in handcuffs aboard the USS Iwo Jima on that morning. Yet following this real photo was made public, AI-generated pictures persisted online but were altered to include the grey tracksuit worn by Maduro.
Digital forensics reveal these altered fabrications were initially shared on TikTok by a digital art profile. Similarly, SynthID found these subsequent pictures were generated or edited generative artificial intelligence.
Key Points:
- Synthetic media spread rapidly following the announcement of the president's apprehension.
- The initial fabricated image was shared on the same day on social media.
- Detection software like AI-watermark detectors helped to confirm the images as inauthentic.
- Fabrications persisted to spread and be updated despite the publication of authentic images.
- The origin of many fakes was traced to specific online profiles focused on AI art.
