What happened

UK-based actors Dan Dewhirst, Mark Torres and others told The Guardian that were horrified to discover that their likenesses had been used in AI-powered propaganda clips generated by groups linked to authoritarian states such as China, Russia and Venezuela.

Actor and one-time Synthesia model Dan Dewhirst discovered his likeness was being used in AI-generated economic propaganda pushed by the government of Venezuelan Dictator Nicolas Maduro. As a result, he said he may have lost clients and that his reputation had been damaged. 

Mark Torres says he was shocked to find out that his likeness had been used in a propaganda video supporting Burkina Faso’s dictator. "People will think I am involved in the coup," he told The Guardian.

Why it happened

Synthesia says it does not allow “the use of stock avatars for political content, including content that is factually accurate but may create polarisation”, and that its policies were designed to stop its avatars being used for “manipulation, deceptive practices, impersonations and false associations”. 

Despite Synthesia's stated commitment to responsible AI practices, critics believe that these measures are not sufficient to prevent abuse of the platform.