Did Will Smith Upload an AI-Enhanced Video - and Is This Just the Beginning?

Blogger Andy Baio suggested Will Smith's team might have used AI to transform concert photos into videos. This comes as Google experimented with AI to improve YouTube Shorts without creator permission, leading to complaints of AI-generated appearances. Will Smith's viral clip may have been an unintended victim of this experiment, with evidence like a specific sign appearing in prior posts. Will Smith himself has not denied the AI's use in these promotional clips. The Hollywood Reporter labels this incident as the start of AI-related chaos, noting the long-standing quiet use of AI upscaling by influencers. As AI tools improve, AI-generated content will become indistinguishable. Experts predict that soon it will be impossible to identify AI videos, marking the end of the current "cringe" perception. This moment captures AI's nascent stage, where it's noticeable but not perfect. The author believes this phase of overt AI detection will pass quickly. The primary impact of synthetic media will be that video loses its status as a reliable indicator of truth. While AI image generators have already eroded trust, video was the last bastion of perceived objectivity. However, there's an upside to this shift. As video can no longer guarantee truth, the source of content, like human-led creators, will become more important. News organizations, having lost trust in recent years, may regain significance as reliable sources of factual information. The medium will no longer be trusted, but the media itself might be newly believed.