Viral Images of Giant Ice Aircraft Carrier in China Revealed as AI-Generated Fakes
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Viral images showed a giant aircraft carrier sculpture made of ice in Harbin, China, but local officials confirmed the pictures were AI-generated fakes.
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The realistic images claimed to show visitors on board and queuing to see the ice replica of China's first aircraft carrier at Harbin's annual snow festival.
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A government spokesperson said festival organizers "did not build an ice aircraft carrier" and the photos spread on social media platform Weibo were artificial intelligence creations.
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Smaller ice sculptures of warships have been built at previous Harbin winter carnivals by university students, but nothing on the scale of the fake viral images.
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China has the world's largest navy with advanced new aircraft carriers, fueling intense public interest, which may explain why the AI-faked pictures gained traction.