Why AI conspiracy videos are spamming social media

Creators of sham content are finding a profitable home on various platforms.

Beyond the cash cow, the genre also taps the increasing draw of such theories amid growing mistrust in governments. PHOTO: REUTERS
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In a viral TikTok video, celebrity podcaster Joe Rogan appears to deliver a damning message: “We are all probably going to die in the next few years. Did you hear about this? There’s this asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth.” This information was kept top secret by the state, he insists, but then leaked by a US agency worker named Jonathan Brown.

In fact, the video is a sham, experts say. While the images are of Rogan, the audio appears to be a fake artificial intelligence-generated clone of his voice, according to non-profit Media Matters. And the asteroid covered up by the government? A baseless conspiracy theory. There is nothing to suggest that Rogan was knowingly involved in the clip.

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