How to Detect AI-Generated Images

It’s getting harder and harder to believe your eyes. Here’s how you can figure out whether an AI or a human created what you’re seeing. And take our quiz to see how good you are at spotting the work of an AI! By Chandra Steele You can no longer believe your own eyes, even when it seems clear that the pope is sporting a new puffer. AI images have quickly evolved from laughably bizarre to frighteningly believable, and there are big consequences to not being able to tell authentically created images from those generated by artificial intelligence. AI tools to create images-those images you can conjure in your mind but not necessarily execute through traditional media such as photography and painting-are easily accessible and either free or low-cost. OpenAI’s Dall-E 2, Stable DIffusion, Midjourney, and Craiyon create credible-looking images that can fool at first glance, and likely even second and third ones.ﾠ <h2>Test Your AI-Detection Skills With Our Quiz (Available at PCMag.com)</h2> These text-to-image generators work in a matter of seconds, but the damage they can do is lasting, from political propaganda to deepfake porn. AI is getting better and better at being undetectable. The industry is working on watermarking and other solutions to identify AI-generated images, though these do not include anything that would be visible to the human eye. But there are steps you can take to evaluate images and increase the likelihood that you won’t be fooled by a robot.