How an information vacuum about Maduro's capture was filled with deepfakes and AI

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How an information vacuum about Maduro's capture was filled with deepfakes and AI  A real-time flood of AI-generated images and videos of Maduro's capture by US forces on Saturday were re-shared by public figures and garnered millions of views across Europe.   READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/01/07/how-an-information-vacuum-about-maduros-capture-was-filled-with-deepfakes-and-ai  Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages

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00:00How was the information vacuum about Maduro's capture filled with deepfakes?

00:09Out of all of these images and videos, can you tell what's real and what's not?

00:13The answer is probably no. Even for AI experts, it's tricky.

00:18After the United States captured former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife on the 3rd

00:23of January, social media was flooded with misleading videos and images.

00:28This photo, which many found hard to believe, went viral after it was shared by US President Donald Trump.

00:35The thing is, it doesn't look all that different to this image, which is in fact AI-generated.

00:40See, Maduro is not dressed in the same clothes, instead wearing pyjamas.

00:45This picture was also spread across social media, including by Portugal's far-right Chega Party.

00:51But AI experts detected a synth ID on it, which is an invisible watermark

00:56that flags AI content created with Gemini, Google's AI tool.

01:01This claims to show Maduro supporters protesting on the streets of Venezuela.

01:06In reality, the footage is from mid-November 2025, showcasing a pro-Maduro youth march.

01:13There have also been lots of AI videos claiming to depict Venezuelans who are

01:17overjoyed at Maduro's downfall.

01:19Now, there were mixed reactions inside Venezuela, with Maduro supporters denouncing his capture,

01:25while others have backed it.

01:27But on social media, misleading videos have shared one-sided accounts.

01:32In its response to the capture, the EU stressed the importance of respecting international law

01:37and human rights, as well as Venezuelans' rights to determine their own future.

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