AI-generated footage of zombie-like creatures does not show lab-grown humans
'America is producing human beings in laboratories,' claims the caption on a Facebook Reel written in Amharic, one of Ethiopia's major languages.
Shared more than 150 times, the post contains a 15-second clip that appears to show zombie-like creatures thrashing around in a glass tank. When the creatures try to escape, people who are filming them panic and flee.
'We have enough crazy people, why is America creating more?' reads one of the comments under the Facebook post.
'If America has a shortage of people, why don't they get some from us instead of creating new ones,' adds another user.
The footage, however, does not depict real events.
AFP Fact Check analysed the footage using an AI detection tool called Sensity. The results show there is a 96 percent probability that the footage was made with an online generative tool (archived here).
In addition, the analysis confirmed that the section of the footage purporting to show zombies in containment is entirely synthetic.
AFP Fact Check also used the video verification tool InVID-WeVerify to conduct reverse image searches on keyframes from the footage.
The search results include the original footage published on TikTok by a user called 'remix.master' on December 15, 2024 (archived here). It was shared more than 400,000 times and has more than two million views.
The original footage is accompanied by a caption that reads: 'When a Zombie Exhibition Goes Horribly Wrong.'
'Step into the chilling public exhibition at Area 51, where rows of zombie-like creatures float eerily in containment tanks,' adds the caption.
AI-generated content often contains visual anomalies, particularly when it comes to mimicking human features (archived here).
Several distortions occur in the footage: a member of the public morphs in and out of being a zombie while one of the mutant creatures appears to fly down from the ceiling and then merges with the crowd.
AFP Fact Check further reviewed the TikTok account where the footage was originally posted and confirmed that it features numerous AI-generated clips of aliens and zombies purportedly found in Area 51.
'Inspiring creator on TikTok, sharing creativity and entertaining videos,' reads the bio. The account has more than 640,000 followers.
Similar videos published by the same account indicate in the caption they have been created using AI (archived here).
Area 51, officially known as the Nevada Test and Training Range, is a top-secret US Air Force facility at Groom Lake in southern Nevada (archived here).
According to the US Air Force, it provides 'multidimensional battle-space to conduct testing tactics development, and advanced training in support of U.S. national interests' (archived here).
The facility is not open to the public and is patrolled by armed guards. It is also impossible to enter the airspace above the facility without permission from air traffic control (archived here).
Area 51 is conspiracy fodder for those who believe it harbours the remains of extraterrestrials and unidentified flying objects (archived here).
AFP Fact Check has contacted the US facility for a comment and this story will be updated as the response becomes available.
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