Viral Video Claiming To Show Massive Israeli Airstrike In Iran Is AI-Generated

Claim

An Israeli airstrike in Iran, causing massive shockwaves obliterating buildings in its path.

The archived version of the post can be seen here. We received this video on our Whatsapp tipline (+91-9999499044), too, with users requesting us to fact-check it.

Fact

Newschecker did not find any such video in the extensive media coverage of the Israel-Iran conflict, raising our doubts. Also, the extra smooth texture of the shockwaves and the buildings in the 13-second video indicated some form of AI-generation.

Newschecker then ran the video past Deepfake-o-Meter, where its main classifier concluded a 100% probability of the video being “AI-generated”. We also ran the video past Cantilux, an AI-content detection tool, which stated a 74% probability of it being AI-generated. “High confidence in AI generation. The content exhibits characteristic patterns and artifacts commonly associated with AI-generated media,” read its review of the video.

We ran a reverse image search of keyframes, which led us to a longer version of the viral video on Youtube, uploaded on October 31, 2024, well before the conflict. “End of the world, according to AI”, read the Spanish title of the video, with its description stating, “In an experiment, an AI engine was asked what the end of the world would be like, and this is the result. Beyond the ethical implications, what do you think about this experiment?” which further confirms that the viral video is AI-generated.

Also Read: N Chandrasekaran Arrested After Air India Plane Crash In Ahmedabad? No, False Claim Goes Viral

Sources
Deepfake-o-meter
Youtube video, Revista InformaBTL, October 31, 2024