"Trolls Can Rest Assured...": Alexis Ohanian Shares AI-Made Video Of Late Mother, Faces Flak
Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has left the Internet divided after an emotional post about his late mother went viral. He used artificial intelligence (AI) software, Midjourney, to create a small clip from an old photograph, in which he is seen hugging his mother, sitting on a mountain meadow.
"I dropped one of my favorite photos of us in midjourney as 'starting frame for an AI video' and wow... This is how she hugged me. I've rewatched it 50 times," he wrote in the caption.
Damn, I wasn't ready for how this would feel. We didn't have a camcorder, so there's no video of me with my mom. I dropped one of my favorite photos of us in midjourney as 'starting frame for an AI video' and wow... This is how she hugged me. I've rewatched it 50 times. pic.twitter.com/n2jNwdCkxF
— Alexis Ohanian 🗽 (@alexisohanian) June 22, 2025
The sweet moment comes alive in the video, touted as "Really special" by one user. "This makes me tear up for the boy in you who misses her hugs," another user said.
However, some rejected the idea of making such videos using AI. One user said, "It's a fake memory."
Ohanian posted the video on Sunday, which went viral within hours with over 24.7 million views on the post so far. After facing flak, the Reddit co-founder reacted to the post, saying that he lost his mother almost 20 years ago and added, "Trolls can rest assured I've grieved sufficiently."
"My family couldn't afford a camcorder and using tech to generate few seconds of animation from a still is the equivalent of using AI to stabilize a poorly recorded video - or fill in the gaps of a deteriorated video - of her (if we'd had it). It's not a replacement for a loved one nor should it be," he added.
Why did the social media users say?
"Be careful with this. Human memories are very malleable, and you'll remember what the AI shows you whether it's true or not," one user said.
"Dunno bro. Kinda crossing the emotional Rubicon here. Sweet picture, don't get me wrong, but you guys are using AI to supplement things I don't think is intellectually or emotionally healthy to do," one user commented.
Another added, "Feels like I'm watching a bunch of people about to jump into a pit of despair following and worshipping the AI output."
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