AI-generated images of Met gala fools Internet

Katy Perry and Rihanna didn't attend the Met Gala this year. But that didn't stop AI-generated images from tricking some fans into thinking the stars made appearances on the steps of fashion's biggest night.

Deepfake images depicting a handful of big names at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's annual fundraiser quickly spread online on May 7 and 8.

Some eagle-eyed social media users spotted discrepancies and platforms themselves, such as X's Community Notes, soon noted that the images were likely created using artificial intelligence. One clue that a viral picture of Perry in a flower-covered gown, for example, was bogus is that the carpeting on the stairs matched that from the 2018 event, not this year's green-tinged fabric lined with live foliage.

Still, others were fooled, including Perry's own mother. Hours after at least two AI-generated images of the singer began swirling online, Perry reposted them to her Instagram, accompanied by a screenshot of a text that appeared to be from her mom complimenting her on what she thought was a real Met Gala appearance.

"lol mom the AI got to you too, BEWARE!" Perry responded in the exchange.

In a caption on her Instagram post, Perry wrote, "couldn't make it to the MET, had to work." The post also included a muted video of her singing.

Meanwhile, a fake image of Rihanna in a stunning white gown embroidered with flowers, birds and branches also made its rounds online.

While the source or sources of these images is hard to lock down, the realistic-looking Met Gala backdrop seen in many suggests that whatever AI tool was used to create them was likely trained on some images of past events.

Last year, Getty sued a leading AI image generator, London-based Stability AI,...