[Source: BBC]

AI-generated images of Katy Perry and Rihanna at the Met Gala have been going viral on social media.

Neither of the singers was present at the event, but that didn’t stop fake images of them circulating on X, formerly Twitter.

Perry shared two fake images of her on Instagram with the caption “couldn’t make it to the MET, had to work”.

One image of the singer in a floral gown with a moss trim has been viewed over 13 million times on X.

The picture was first posted at the start of the red carpet event at the Museum of Modern Art in New York with the caption: “Katy Perry. That’s it.”

Fans replied to Perry’s Instagram post admitting they had been fooled by the picture.

“I really reposted this believing it was true,” one fan said, while another wrote “Wait, it’s AI-generated?! I got fooled.”

The Fireworks singer also shared a screenshot of a conversation with her mum who was also fooled by the image.

“lol Mom the AI got you too, BEWARE!” Perry said in a message.

Another AI image of the singer, this time wearing a gold corseted gown with a key breastplate on the red carpet, has also been going viral with over 5 million views.

The dress was fitting with the 2024 theme, The Garden of Time – a short story about a Count and Countess who pluck time-reversing flowers.

Analysis
Marianna Spring, Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent

Why does this matter? After all – this is the red carpet, not an election. Well, it tells us how AI-generated content is becoming ever more convincing. They even managed to trick Katy Perry’s own mum.

The tell-tale signs are still there; a photographer missing half of his head, dodgy fingers on another – and the carpet itself is from 2018. But it still feels like an improvement on some of the other AI-generated images that have gone viral.

And this can all get a lot more serious.

Over the past few months, I’ve investigated how AI-generated images of former US President Donald Trump with black voters – some satirical, others not – have been created and shared by supporters ahead of the election.

And how faked AI-generated audio of London’s Mayor – which sounded like a secret recording – fanned the flames of rest offline. It falsely suggested he was moving Remembrance Day ceremonies to accommodate a pro-Palestinian march.

These tactics will be at play on our social media feeds in the coming months – so this is a reminder to put our social media sleuthing to the test.

An AI-generated image of Rihanna has also had millions of views on social media. The picture shows her on the red carpet wearing an embroidered gown complete with fauna, birds and an enormous circular armpiece.

According to People, the 36-year-old was unable to make the event after coming down with the flu.

At the beginning of the night, fake photos of Dua Lipa were circulating showing her in an off-shoulder corseted gown with a fringe and bow. It showed her at a different location to the carpet.

A few hours later, the 28-year-old British-Albanian singer later turned up to the event in an entirely different outfit – a lacy all-black dress with bedazzled belly chains, mesh polka-dot gloves and a massive black feather boa over her shoulder.

The annual charity event draws A-list celebrities and the who’s who of the fashion world and this year Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Chris Hemsworth and Bad Bunny joined Vogue’s Anna Wintour as hosts.

The event raises money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and tickets are rumoured to cost upwards of $70,000 (£56,000)