Viral photos of Putin as Buddhist monk are AI-generated

Hyderabad: Social media users are sharing two images of Russian President Vladimir Putin clad in a Buddhist monk’s attire with the claim that he has given up his old lifestyle and embraced Buddhism. (Click here and here to see the posts.)

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the images have been created using an AI art tool called Midjourney.

On performing a reverse image search, we came across a Facebook post from 18 March on a group called “AI CREATIVES THAILAND.” It had two images of Putin, which have gone viral, and also two images of US President Joe Biden. All four images show the two state heads dressed up as Buddhist monks.

The caption states that these images are not real and were created using the AI tool Midjourney.

The user who posted these images in the group identified himself as a digital creator. We skimmed through his account and found several AI-created images posted by him.

Finally, we searched for news reports but did not find any report about Putin embracing Buddhism or monkhood.

Hence, we conclude that the viral images of Vladimir Putin in a monk’s attire are not real and were created using AI tools.