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By Martha McHardy
US News Reporter
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A fake commercial created with OpenAI’s new Sora 2 video tool is spreading rapidly online, depicting a mock children’s toy ad set on “Epstein Island."
Newsweek has contacted OpenAI and the White House for comment via email.
Why It Matters
The viral video highlights the challenges OpenAI faces in moderating its new platform. While framed as satire, the content references child exploitation, raising questions about the adequacy of Sora 2’s safeguards.
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What To Know
The clip, styled like a 1990s commercial, features palm trees, waterfalls, hidden rooms, and an “Orange Man” action figure resembling president Donald Trump that repeats the phrase, “don’t release the files.”
It also includes references to secret surveillance cameras and a massage room, directly invoking allegations of sex trafficking and abuse tied to Epstein’s island.
Epstein, a financier with ties to powerful figures, died in jail in 2019 while facing federal charges. Trump has maintained that he had no involvement in Epstein's crimes.
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The viral ad was created by Mathieu Samson, founder of the AI filmmaking agency Kickflix.
Samson has acknowledged the risks posed by the platform. “There definitely is not enough filters right now,” he told The Washington Post, adding that he expects OpenAI to tighten restrictions as more problematic clips are flagged. But he also predicted users will continue testing boundaries: “No matter the filters, there are always work-arounds.”
The video has been shared widely on X and TikTok and has generated sharp backlash online. Critics described it as trivializing child exploitation, with one X user writing, “Content related to such a topic is deeply inappropriate and raises serious ethical, legal, and social issues.”
Others pointed to the Trump caricature as a violation of Sora 2’s rules, which ban depictions of public figures.
The video is one of several provocative creations produced in the days since the general purpose video and audio generation system launched. Another widely circulated clip portrayed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stealing GPUs from a Target store.
OpenAI’s safety documentation states that Sora 2 filters block unsafe material such as sexual content, terrorism, and self-harm, and prohibits portrayals of real-world public figures.
AI-generated video has rapidly spread across platforms such as TikTok and YouTube over the past year, with Hollywood studios also testing the technology to cut production time. Political figures are using it as well.
This week, President Donald Trump shared a fake AI-generated video on Truth Social depicting House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) wearing a sombrero and mustache. California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office also posted fabricated clips of Vice President J.D. Vance on X.
The release of Sora marks the first attempt by a major tech company to build a social platform centered entirely on AI-generated video. Tests by The Washington Post showed the tool could produce convincing fake footage of public figures, including real people dressed as Nazi generals, simulated scenes from shows like South Park, and fabricated clips of historical figures such as John F. Kennedy.
OpenAI initially launched Sora last year as a text-to-video generator for short clips. Since then, competitors including Google and Meta have rolled out similar products. Meta’s latest update, a feature called Vibes, allows users to create and share AI-generated videos directly inside its app.
What Happens Next
Open AI has not yet responded. The company has said that OpenAI Sora 2 is currently only available in the U.S. and Canada, but that access will expand.
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