Such AI-generated content attracted approximately 335 million views on social media, resulting in financial losses estimated at ¥2 billion to ¥4.5 billion for celebrities and artists, according to the study. The estimated losses were calculated based on licensing fees related to using a person's likeness or voice, as well as the advertising value of view counts. However, the nonprofit added that the "actual financial losses might be significantly larger than the estimate," as the calculation only covered cases they were able to find. Only 1.1% of companies said they had guidelines on how to deal with these violations. Some 52% said they were "currently considering" options, while the rest had no plans as of date.

Global society makes billions of images and uploads hundreds of thousands of hours of video on the internet every day. The problem is, some of this content is misleading or downright wrong. And when it's in visual form, it can be particularly convincing . Take the Met Gala that happened earlier this month in New York. While photographers snapped photos of Rhianna, Beyoncé and Nicole Kidman as they strutted their stuff, others saw "photos" of celebrities, such as Rosalía, Lady Gaga and Jacob Elordi, who were actually elsewhere (the images in the below Instagram carousel are AI generated).

This position paper argues that real-time generative AI has the potential to become the next wave of addictive digital media, creating a new class of digital content akin to "digital heroin" with severe implications for mental health and youth development. By shortening the content-generation feedback loop to mere seconds, these advanced models will soon be able to hyper-personalize outputs on the fly. When paired with misaligned incentives (e.g., maximizing user engagement), this will fuel unprecedented compulsive consumption patterns with far-reaching consequences for mental health, cognitive development, and social stability. Drawing on interdisciplinary research, from clinical observations of social media addiction to neuroscientific studies of dopamine-driven feedback, we illustrate how real-time tailored content generation may erode user autonomy, foment emotional distress, and disproportionately endanger vulnerable groups, such as adolescents. Due to the rapid advancement of generative AI and its potential to induce severe addictionlike effects, we call for strong government oversight akin to existing controls on addictive substances, particularly for minors. We further urge the machine learning community to act proactively by establishing robust design guidelines, collaborating with public health experts, and supporting targeted policy measures to ensure responsible and ethical deployment, rather than paving the way for another wave of unregulated digital dependence.

Google's Circle to Search feature can tell you if an image was AI-generated Google's Circle to Search feature can tell you if an image was AI-generated The company is expanding SynthID to Chrome and Search. As Google introduces new models and tools for generating AI content, it's also making it a little bit easier for people to answer the question was this created with AI? The company is expanding its AI detection system SynthID so features like Circle to Search and Lens will be able to identify AI-generated and AI-edited images. SynthID is Google's homegrown watermarking system that appends invisible metadata to content created or modified with its own AI tools. Last year at I/O, the company debuted a dedicated SynthID detector and later integrated the feature into the Gemini app .

This Scammer Used an AI-Generated MAGA Girl to Grift'Super Dumb' Men A med student says he's made thousands of dollars selling photos and videos of a young conservative woman he created using generative tools. Like many medical school students, Sam was broke. The 22-year-old aspiring orthopedic surgeon from northern India got some money from his parents, but he says he spent most of it subsidizing his licensing exams, and he's still saving up to hopefully emigrate to the US after graduation. So he started searching for ways to make additional money online. Sam, who requested a pseudonym to avoid jeopardizing his medical career and immigration status, tried a few things, with varying degrees of legitimacy and success.

Microsoft has a new plan to prove what's real and what's AI online A new proposal calls on social media and AI companies to adopt strict verification, but the company hasn't committed to following its own recommendations. There are the high-profile cases you may easily spot, like when White House officials recently shared a manipulated image of a protester in Minnesota and then mocked those asking about it. Other times, it slips quietly into social media feeds and racks up views, like the videos that Russian influence campaigns are currently spreading to discourage Ukrainians from enlisting. It is into this mess that Microsoft has put forward a blueprint, shared with, for how to prove what's real online. An AI safety research team at the company recently evaluated how methods for documenting digital manipulation are faring against today's most worrying AI developments, like interactive deepfakes and widely accessible hyperrealistic models. It then recommended technical standards that can be adopted by AI companies and social media platforms.

AI'slop' is transforming social media - and a backlash is brewing Théodore remembers the AI slop that tipped him over the edge. The image was of two emaciated, impoverished South Asian children. For some reason, despite their boyish features they have thick beards. One of them had no hands and only one foot. The other was holding a sign saying it's his birthday and asking for likes.

Reddit is being touted as an antidote to AI-generated content. Reddit is being touted as an antidote to AI-generated content. Platform is now Britain's fourth most visited social media site as users seek out human-generated content Reddit, the online discussion platform, has overtaken TikTok as Britain's fourth most visited social media service, as search algorithms and gen Z have dramatically transformed its prominence. The platform has undergone huge growth over the last two years, with an 88% increase in the proportion of UK internet users it reaches. Three in five Brits online now encounter the site, up from a third in 2023, according to Ofcom .

A surge of AI-generated content is frustrating Pinterest users and left some questioning whether the platform still works at all. For five years, Caitlyn Jones has used Pinterest on a weekly basis to find recipes for her son. In September, Jones spotted a creamy chicken and broccoli slow-cooker recipe, sprinkled with golden cheddar and a pop of parsley. She quickly looked at the ingredients and added them to her grocery list. But just as she was about to start cooking, having already bought everything, one thing stood out: The recipe told her to start by "logging" the chicken into the slow cooker.

There is no doubt that 2025 will be remembered as the year of slop. A popular term for incorrect, weird and often downright ugly AI-generated content, slop has rotted nearly every platform on the internet. Enough slop has accumulated over the past few years that scientists can now measure its effects on people over time. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that people using large language models (LLMs) such as those behind ChatGPT to write essays show far less brain activity than those who don't. And then there are the potential ill-effects on our mental health, with reports that certain chatbots are encouraging people to believe in fantasies or conspiracies, as well as urging them to self-harm, and that they may trigger or worsen psychosis.