This was made by artificial intelligence in a viral victim

In March 2023, a picture of Pope Francis toured the Internet at an extraordinary speed. He was wearing a A white coat lined in the signer, modern and luxurious. The contradiction with the traditional papal Kasoc was shocking like a convincing.

For many users, there was no doubt: Pope I decided to embrace the urban fashion. But it was not real. the The image was created by artificial intelligence.

This situation was distinguished before and after the global conversation about the risks of artificial intelligence, especially in it The ability to produce realistic images Even the most trained eye deception.

How did the picture arise?

The image has been created with Midjourney, an artificial intelligence platform specialized in creating pictures of the text. The user shared the image as part of a series of creative experiences, without malicious intentions, but with unexpected results: millions of people shared the image that you think were real.

This severe update means like The New York Times and the BBC had to deny it. At that time, it is already late: Deepfake of the Pope was already an icon Subordinate The era of visual wrong information.

Why was it very reliable?

IA experts have explained that the image has the main characteristics of deceiving the public:

• High resolution unit.
• Spreading a neutral credibility and gesture.
• Coherent scenario (i.e. street).
• Real design clothes, linked to celebrities.

In addition, Pope Francis is a widely respected media personality, which Increase the effect of any content Related to it.

The cultural influence of the first “Deepfake Pop”

The Pope’s image with Balenciaga coat not only proven the strength of artificial intelligence to manufacture false images. It was also born a broader discussion about:

• Speed ​​of wrong information: The image went viral before the first doubts appear.
• Visual confidence erosion: If something convincing can be a mistake, what will be that?
• Public figures can be overcome: religious, political, or celebrities to themes or symbols without their consent.

Until an area was opened for the paradox: a lot Users celebrated the “pattern” of the Pope And adopted it as a fashion figure. But at the bottom of the joke, the danger was real.

What did we learn from this episode?

The condition of Pope Francis with a layer of artificial intelligence was an early alert. It has shown that malicious intentions are not necessary to generate wrong information: a convincing image, a social network and thousands of eyes ready to believe.

Today, with tools such as Sora or Runway or more can be accessed and developed, the border between realism and imagination is unclear.

Although it is still torn if the Pope is a real “victim”, the truth is that His image was used without permission and outside the contextOpen an urgent conversation on ethics, truth and technology.

BGPA