Society
Not AI Generated, Grok Used To Improve Quality – Presidency Shuts Talks About Tinubu/Kagame Photo
was taken with a mobile phone and initially appeared in poor quality
The presidency has dismissed claims circulating online that a viral photograph showing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Paris was generated by artificial intelligence, describing the narrative as a misrepresentation of facts.
In a statement on Monday, Temitope Ajayi, senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, said the picture is authentic and was taken during a real-life meeting between the two leaders in Paris on Sunday.
Ajayi said Tinubu and Kagame met and had lunch together earlier in the day, before later joining French President Emmanuel Macron for dinner the same evening.
“The picture is real and not AI generated as claimed,” Ajayi said, stressing that the controversy arose from a misunderstanding about how the image was processed after it was taken.
According to him, the photograph was taken with a mobile phone and initially appeared in poor quality, a factor that fuelled speculation on social media.
“The photographer only later used Grok to improve the picture quality. That is not a reason to conclude it was AI generated,” he said
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Ajayi criticised those who pushed the AI narrative, saying basic verification would have prevented what he described as an erroneous conclusion.
The presidency said the clarification was necessary to counter misleading reports and reaffirm that the engagement between Tinubu, Kagame and Macron in Paris took place as reported.
