Bobby Althoff attends the People's Choice Awards in Santa Monica, California on February 18, 2024. (Photo by MICHAEL TRAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Podcast host Bobby Althoff took to Instagram Wednesday to address the sexually explicit videos trending on X and other corners of the internet, writing, “It's 100% not me that's trending. It was definitely created by AI.”
The 26-year-old has gained quite a following online recently for her celebrity interviews, but the graphic footage circulated on X for several days despite the platform's rules banning non-consensual nudity. She is the latest victim to have her likeness used in a new video.
The issue has been an ongoing battle over X in recent weeks, with AI-generated sexual and abusive images of Taylor Swift causing the platform to temporarily block searches for her name late last month. .
Porn deepfakes are becoming indistinguishable from real footage, as technology advances rapidly to make it easier to manipulate videos and swap faces on bodies with other people's faces.
“The whole team called me and were like, 'Is this real?'” Althoff explained in a video post to her Instagram Story. “Anyway, it's not me. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but what the hell do you mean-?”
Many users of X appear to be using Althoff's AI-generated videos as bait for a practice known as “engagement farming,” in which they exchange likes and other engagement on their accounts. It has promised to send the allegedly leaked videos to users, and it may be able to do so later. Monetized.
Users who pay for X Premium (those with a blue checkmark) can choose to monetize engagement on their posts, often using manipulated content to grow their following. Masu.
At one point on Wednesday, “Bobby Althoff leak” was even a recommended search term, even though the video violated Company X's policies.
Genevieve Oh, a researcher who studies the rise of deepfakes, told NBC that at least 40 posts, including Althoff's video, garnered more than 6.5 million views on the site within 24 hours.
X did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday about what steps are being taken to combat these practices.
But for Althoff, online controversy is nothing new. The host of “The Really Good Podcast” was at the center of rumors earlier this month that her recent divorce was due to an undisclosed relationship with rapper Drake, but she later addressed that speculation. denied.
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