Lesson 9 of 9
How to spot AI content?
6 min read
Six fingers, warped text, a too-smooth face — the old giveaways are vanishing fast. So how do you tell what's AI now?
Glitch-hunting is losing
For a while you could spot fakes by their mistakes. Models improved, and those tells are disappearing — a convincing image, voice, or video is now cheap to make. Trusting your eyes is exactly the instinct that gets people fooled.
You can't reliably eyeball AI content anymore — the mistakes are gone.
Check the label, not the pixels
The durable move is provenance: Content Credentials (C2PA) attach a signed 'made with AI' history to a file, and watermarks like SynthID hide a detectable mark inside it. Beyond tech, use judgement — where did this come from, does the source check out, does a second source agree? Verify, don't glitch-hunt.
Provenance and context beat pixel-squinting every time.
When an image or clip matters, check its source and any Content Credentials before believing or sharing it — don't rely on spotting glitches.
Spotting AI, the reliable way
- —Visual 'tells' are disappearing — don't rely on them.
- —Check provenance: Content Credentials (C2PA), SynthID.
- —Verify the source and cross-check before sharing.
What's the reliable way to tell if content is AI-made?
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