Despite former President Donald Trump’s claims on Truth Social on Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris’s 15,000-person crowd in Michigan was neither faked nor created using artificial intelligence.
Trump claimed on Sunday that Harris had “deceived” and manipulated the crowd of supporters who greeted her upon her arrival at Detroit airport on Wednesday using artificial intelligence.
“There was no one on the plane,” Trump wrote, later calling for Harris to be disqualified from the election because “creating a false image is ELECTION INTERFERENCE.”
Related: Facebook apologizes after mistakenly labeling photo of Donald Trump as ‘altered’
The image, however, was not created using artificial intelligence. It was taken at an event covered by Fox News, Reuters, the Detroit News and other media outlets. Fox Detroit wrote on Wednesday that “thousands” attended the rally in Detroit and confirmed today that an estimated 15,000 people showed up.
Harris’ campaign responded to Trump’s accusation by saying the image was real. Videos of the event and photos taken at the time by Getty Images confirm that the picture was also real.
Tech giants like Google, Meta and Microsoft have promised to monitor their platforms for AI-altered or AI-created content ahead of the November election, but that’s unlikely to stop the influx of AI-generated content – and claims of fake photos.
Since last month, Google has required advertisers to disclose when they use deepfakes – realistic AI versions of people’s voices and images – in election ads.
Despite these efforts, AI has already made several appearances this election season. In February, an AI robocall using President Joe Biden’s voice urged 20,000 Democrats in New Hampshire not to vote in the state’s presidential primary.
1) This is a real photo of a 15,000-strong crowd at Harris-Walz in Michigan
2) Trump still hasn’t campaigned in a swing state in over a week…Low energy? pic.twitter.com/VgTfoMAcuk
— KamalaHQ (@KamalaHQ) 11 August 2024
In late July, Elon Musk shared a parody video of Harris with his 193.8 million followers on X. In the video, Harris’ voice and image are manipulated to make statements such as “I was chosen because I am the ultimate diversity hire.”
Musk did not disclose that the video was a parody when it was released. In early July, he endorsed Trump.
Following the assassination attempt on Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania in July, a Meta spokesperson apologized after the company incorrectly labeled a photo of Trump as “altered.”
Trump is scheduled to appear for an interview with Musk on Monday evening.
Related: JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon gives policy advice to Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in new editorial – is an endorsement next?
