Description: In New York, linked "Citizens Against Mamdani" accounts reportedly posted AI-generated videos of fictional constituents criticizing then-mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani across Instagram, TikTok, and X. Some videos reportedly displayed a visible Sora watermark, and forensic reviewers reportedly assessed at least one clip as highly likely to be a deepfake. The campaign reportedly appeared to simulate grassroots opposition and drew substantial engagement.
Editor Notes: Timeline notes: Incident date set to 11/05/2025 based on a reported recovered Instagram post from the citizensagainstmamdani account showing a visible Sora watermark and an on-platform posting date of November 5, 2025. This appears to currently be the earliest verified public posting identified for the campaign. The incident ID was created 03/21/2026.
Entities
View all entitiesAlleged: OpenAI , Deepfake technology developers and Synthetic audio generation technology developers developed an AI system deployed by Unknown social media account operators , Information manipulation actors , Citizens Against Mamdani social media accounts , Citizens Against Mamdani and Information manipulation actors targeting Zohran Mamdani, which harmed Zohran Mamdani , Voters in New York , General public of New York , Epistemic integrity , American social media users and Democratic integrity.
Alleged implicated AI systems: X (Twitter) , Deepfake technology , TikTok , Sora , Instagram and Synthetic audio generation technology
Incident Stats
Risk Subdomain
A further 23 subdomains create an accessible and understandable classification of hazards and harms associated with AI
4.1. Disinformation, surveillance, and influence at scale
Risk Domain
The Domain Taxonomy of AI Risks classifies risks into seven AI risk domains: (1) Discrimination & toxicity, (2) Privacy & security, (3) Misinformation, (4) Malicious actors & misuse, (5) Human-computer interaction, (6) Socioeconomic & environmental harms, and (7) AI system safety, failures & limitations.
- Malicious Actors & Misuse
Entity
Which, if any, entity is presented as the main cause of the risk
AI
Timing
The stage in the AI lifecycle at which the risk is presented as occurring
Post-deployment
Intent
Whether the risk is presented as occurring as an expected or unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
Intentional
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
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A creepy account that's almost certainly using AI to generate videos of imaginary New Yorkers criticizing mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani raises a frightening prospect: that deepfakes could be used not just to impersonate politicians, but also c…
Variants
A "variant" is an AI incident similar to a known case—it has the same causes, harms, and AI system. Instead of listing it separately, we group it under the first reported incident. Unlike other incidents, variants do not need to have been reported outside the AIID. Learn more from the research paper.
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