AI Tools Exploited for Racist European City Videos by Far-Right

AI Tools Exploited for Racist European City Videos

Far-right leaders across Europe are exploiting AI tools to create and spread dystopian videos depicting European cities overrun by immigrants, falsely presenting them as objective predictions of the future.

Key Takeaways

• AI-generated videos showing European cities in 2050 with Islamic imagery and decay are being widely shared.
• Far-right politicians are using these clips to promote racist narratives and conspiracy theories.
• Experts warn AI moderation systems are failing to prevent the creation of this harmful content.

Widespread Distribution

British far-right leader Tommy Robinson reposted a “London in 2050” video in June, gaining over half a million views. Similar AI videos have been shared by Austrian radical nationalist Martin Sellner, Belgian right-wing parliamentarian Sam van Rooy, and Italian MEP Silvia Sardone.

Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom released an AI video of women in Muslim headscarves titled “Netherlands in 2050” during October elections, despite only 6% of the Dutch population identifying as Muslim.

“AI tools are being exploited to visualise and spread extremist narratives,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate.

Platform Responses

TikTok has banned the creator account behind videos posted by Robinson, stating it bans accounts that repeatedly promote hateful ideology. However, Ahmed singled out X, owned by Elon Musk, as “very powerful for amplifying hate and disinformation.”

“Moderation systems are consistently failing across all platforms to prevent this content from being created and shared,” Ahmed added.

Dangerous Consequences

Beatriz Lopes Buarque, an academic at the London School of Economics, warned these videos amplify “harmful stereotypes… that can fuel violence.” She told AFP that “mass radicalisation facilitated by AI is getting worse.”

The videos represent a “visual representation of the great replacement conspiracy theory,” Buarque explained. This theory, popularized by a French writer, claims Western elites are complicit in “replacing” local populations with immigrants.

“This particular conspiracy theory has often been mentioned as a justification for terrorist attacks,” said Buarque.

Profit Motive and Easy Creation

The creator behind Robinson’s videos offers paid courses teaching people how to make similar AI clips, suggesting “conspiracy theories” make a “great” topic to attract clicks.

“The problem is that now we live in a society in which hate is very profitable,” Buarque said.

AI Guardrails Easily Bypassed

While AFP testing found that asking ChatGPT, GROK, Gemini and VEO 3 to show cities in 2050 generally generated positive images, experts confirmed chatbots can be easily guided to create racist content.

Salvatore Romano of AI Forensics stated no AI has moderation that “is 100 percent accurate,” leaving space for malicious actors to exploit chatbots.

Marc Owen Jones, a disinformation specialist, found ChatGPT would visualize “a bleak, diverse, survivalist London” and make it “more inclusive, with mosques too,” resulting in images of ragged men rowing on a rubbish-strewn Thames with mosques dominating the skyline.