Pope Francis in a white puffer jacket: real or AI?

As shared

Pope Francis walking outdoors in a long white quilted puffer coat, with a crucifix on a chain around his neck.

AI image made with Midjourney by Pablo Xavier (2023), via Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the US (AI-generated) · Source

AI-MADE

A machine made this.

How sure we areVery high

Based on 2 strong and 0 supporting pieces of evidence.

What we found

This picture shows Pope Francis walking in a long, white puffer jacket. It spread across social media over a weekend in late March 2023, and many people took it for a real photograph, including the model Chrissy Teigen, who said she had thought the jacket was real. It was made with the AI image tool Midjourney on 24 March 2023 by Pablo Xavier, a 31-year-old construction worker from the Chicago area. He shared it first in a Facebook group called AI Art Universe and then on Reddit. He told BuzzFeed News how he made it, and said he simply thought it would be funny to see the Pope in a funny jacket. He also said it was scary that people believed it without questioning it. It became one of the first AI images to fool a mass audience. When a famous person is pictured doing something surprising, search for a news report before you share it.

Key facts

Original source: AI image made with Midjourney by Pablo Xavier (2023), via Wikimedia Commons
First published: Not recorded
Earlier appearances: Not recorded
The claim you saw: No caption recorded
Signs of AI: Yes. Shown below, but not what decided it

The evidence, strongest first

Strong Decides the answer

The maker says soBuzzFeed News interview with the person who made it, 27 March 2023↗Original sourceThe original post in Reddit's r/midjourney↗

Supporting Points the same way

None.

Weak Shown, not relied on

How it looksLook at his right hand: the fingers blur into whatever he is holding. The crucifix hangs from a chain that only exists on one side, and the edge of his glasses melts into the shadow on his cheek. The whole picture also has the smooth, glossy finish that Midjourney produced in early 2023.

Detector scores are often wrong, so they never decide a verdict here.

What we couldn’t establish

Exactly how it was made, and with which prompts, beyond what the sources above say. If you know more, tell us.

Bottom line

Made by AI: the maker says so.

See the original ↗Think we’re wrong?

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33% of players were fooled

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