New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has expressed frustration over a series of fake images circulating on social media platforms purporting to show him with Jeffrey Epstein, describing them as "incredibly difficult" to debunk. The photos, which were generated using an AI tool developed by Google, have caused the mayor distress despite being patently false.
The images in question depict Mamdani's mother, film director Mira Nair, and herself with Epstein and other prominent figures, including former President Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos. One of the photos appears to show Nair holding a baby Mamdani with the same group, which would make it 34 years old.
Mamdani acknowledged that AI-generated images have become a growing concern in recent months, particularly for public figures. He cited an incident from last year's mayoral election campaign when his image was used in an ad featuring him eating rice with his hands. The image was later discredited as an error.
Now, Mamdani is calling for more robust regulation of artificial intelligence at all levels of government to prevent similar incidents. He believes that the current regulatory system is ill-equipped to handle the speed and reach of AI-generated content.
"I find it incredibly difficult to see images that you know are fake," Mamdani said in a statement. "It's not just about me, it's about ensuring we have a city, state, and country with a regulatory system for AI."
Governor Kathy Hochul has already proposed a ban on the use of generative AI in political campaigns in New York, and New York City's education department is set to publish new rules on the use of AI tools in classrooms later this month.
The incident highlights the need for greater awareness and regulation of AI-generated content, particularly when it comes to public figures and sensitive information.
The images in question depict Mamdani's mother, film director Mira Nair, and herself with Epstein and other prominent figures, including former President Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos. One of the photos appears to show Nair holding a baby Mamdani with the same group, which would make it 34 years old.
Mamdani acknowledged that AI-generated images have become a growing concern in recent months, particularly for public figures. He cited an incident from last year's mayoral election campaign when his image was used in an ad featuring him eating rice with his hands. The image was later discredited as an error.
Now, Mamdani is calling for more robust regulation of artificial intelligence at all levels of government to prevent similar incidents. He believes that the current regulatory system is ill-equipped to handle the speed and reach of AI-generated content.
"I find it incredibly difficult to see images that you know are fake," Mamdani said in a statement. "It's not just about me, it's about ensuring we have a city, state, and country with a regulatory system for AI."
Governor Kathy Hochul has already proposed a ban on the use of generative AI in political campaigns in New York, and New York City's education department is set to publish new rules on the use of AI tools in classrooms later this month.
The incident highlights the need for greater awareness and regulation of AI-generated content, particularly when it comes to public figures and sensitive information.
just saw those fake pics of Zohran Mamdani with Jeffrey Epstein 
totally messed up 
can't believe ppl are tryna spread that kinda nonsense online 
AI tech is getting way too advanced 
gotta stay vigilant 
especially for public figures 
I'm so sorry Zohran Mamdani has to go through this 
Like, can't we just focus on making the world a better place instead of spreading fake images? 
The thing is, AI-generated content is getting crazy advanced, but our laws are still like, super slow to catch up 
. It's not fair to Mamdani or anyone else who has to deal with this crap. We need to step it up and make sure there are more rules in place so this stuff doesn't keep happening 
That would be traumatizing for real! We gotta take care of our public figures (and our families!) before it's too late 
anyway this just shows we need more oversight and regulation ASAP! especially when it comes to public figures like mayor mamdani i feel for him, being in the public eye can be tough enough without having fake pics circulating around 
like who uses an AI tool to create fake pics of someone's mom in a compromising situation? 
anyway I got a cousin who works at Google and they're all like "we didn't create the AI tool for nefarious purposes" but come on, it's hard to trust when you see those images 
and can you imagine how frustrating it must be for Mayor Mamdani to deal with this? 
. these fake images are not just annoying they're also kinda scary because who knows what kind of ppl are gonna use them to spread misinformation or worse 
. and yeah, more regulation at all levels of gov would be a good start 
. its not like this is a new thing, people have been using fake images to smear ppl for ages but now with ai we're in a whole new level of trouble 
.
[GIF of a person being misled by a snake oil salesman]
. Can't have fake Mamdani with Epstein just chillin' on Instagram 
[GIF of a horse running wild]
. This is just getting too outta hand 
. We can't just let anyone use it willy-nilly and expect everything to be okay 
& it's not just about him, it's about all the ppl whose info is bein used 2 spread misinformation 
governor kathy hochul's proposal is a good start, but we need more 
some kinda national standard wud be great 
I'm starting to think AI-generated content is just like my aunt's gossip – it's always exaggerated and sometimes completely made up 
. We need some regulation, stat!
, I mean, can you even imagine seeing fake images like that of a mayor with people you don't know? It's already crazy enough in real life, but with AI-generating fake pics, it's like living in a sci-fi movie!