Trump May Have Released AI-Retouched Image Featuring Xi Jinping

US President Donald Trump may have uploaded an AI-retouched image of himself and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to his online platform. He is said to have changed an unflattering facial expression. Data forensics expert Matthew Stamm from Drexel University told the AFP news agency that the photo published by Trump of the president saluting next to Xi during a jet flyover "with a high degree of certainty" shows traces "left by generative AI."

Footage from AFP and other media, as well as the official White House video stream, shows Trump grimacing at Xi's reception at Joint Base Andrews near Washington due to the noise from fighter jets flying over. Xi, who is standing next to him, remains completely unmoved.

The images caused ridicule and malice on social media, among others, but talk show host Jimmy Fallon also took up the scene. Numerous comments on online networks also pointed out that Trump was wearing a coat and black gloves in temperatures of around 18 degrees Celsius.

Facial expression and clothing changed

However, in the picture of the same scene published by Trump on his online service Truth Social on Thursday, the US President does not make a face either. He also wears a plain blue tie and has only one glove on, while in the photos released by the media he is wearing a striped tie and gloves on both hands. In addition, the shoes of a woman in the background do not match the authentic images.

Data forensics expert Stamm, who analyzed the photo published by Trump using special software, told AFP that the statistical traces he discovered were like "fingerprints left by a criminal at a crime scene." Walter Scheirer from the University of Notre Dame was also convinced to the news agency that the image was probably processed using AI.

When asked, the US government initially did not comment on the image. Trump has often attracted attention in the past by posting images of himself that were altered or created using artificial intelligence.