00:00 Russian President Vladimir Putin was asked a question by what appeared to be an AI-generated
00:08 deepfake of himself during a Q&A session with the public on Thursday.
00:13 Putin held his annual phone-in with the Russian public, which was combined with his end-of-year
00:18 news conference.
00:19 It's a closely followed event, but also a carefully orchestrated and curated affair
00:24 giving Russian citizens a chance to speak directly with the President on a range of
00:30 issues.
00:31 The AI questioner introduced himself as a student studying at St. Petersburg Institute.
00:36 He asked Putin whether he has a lot of twins.
00:39 He further asked what was his attitude towards the dangers of neural networks and artificial
00:44 intelligence.
00:45 The question was met with laughter from the spectating crowd and a brief pause from a
00:50 stern-looking Putin.
00:51 Putin's response in Russian, loosely translated, said, "I see you may resemble me and speak
00:58 with my voice, but I have thought about it and decided that only one person must be like
01:02 me and speak with my voice.
01:05 And that will be me."
01:07 The Kremlin recently dismissed long-standing speculation in the press and on social media
01:11 that Putin uses body doubles at some events.
01:14 Meanwhile, there is growing concern across the globe about the use of AI deepfakes to
01:19 spread misinformation.
01:20 Deepfake is a term used to describe an AI-created image, sound or video of a real person.
01:27 This tech is being used to spread false information by doctoring images or audio of political
01:32 figures and celebrities.
01:34 Putin, like other world leaders, is attempting to position Russia as a frontrunner in AI
01:39 technology at a time when countries around the globe are vying for a leadership position.
01:44 The US, China and the European Union or EU are racing to dominate in AI while also paying
01:49 attention to the risks surrounding the technology as it is becoming more and more advanced,
01:54 with some AI-generated avatars now nearly indistinguishable from humans.
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