Associated Incidents
Podcast host Bobbi Althoff took to Instagram on Wednesday to address a sexually explicit video trending on X and other corners of the internet, writing, “The reason I’m trending is 100% not me and is definitely AI-generated.”
The 26-year-old, who has recently gained a significant following online for her celebrity interviews, is the latest victim to have her likeness used in a graphic video which circulated on X for days — despite the platform’s rules prohibiting nonconsensual nudity.
The problem has been a continuous battle for X in recent weeks, with AI-generated sexual and abusive images of Taylor Swift causing the platform to temporarily block searches of her name late last month.
With rapidly improving technology that can easily manipulate videos and swap a body’s face with someone else’s, pornographic deepfakes are becoming indistinguishable from real footage.
“My whole team called me and were like, ‘Is this real?'” Althoff explained in a video post to her Instagram story. “Anyway, not me. Sorry to disappoint, but what the f—?”
Many users on X appeared to be using the the AI-generated video of Althoff as bait for a practice known as “engagement farming,” promising to send users the allegedly leaked video in exchange for likes and other engagement on their account, which can later be monetized.
Users who pay for X Premium (those who have the blue checkmark) can choose to monetize engagement on their posts, and often use manipulated content to grow their following.
“Bobbi Althoff leaks” even became a recommended search term at one point on Wednesday, despite the video violating X’s policy.
Genevieve Oh, a researcher who has studied the rise of deepfakes, told NBC that at least 40 posts containing the Althoff video collected over 6.5 million views on the site in under 24 hours.
X did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Wednesday as to 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, though she later shot down that speculation.