By Alia Shoaib
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A photo is circulating on social media that appears to show President Donald Trump using a walker, but it is AI-generated.
The image was originally posted on X by Democratic strategist Keith Edwards, and has been viewed 6 million times early on Friday.
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Edwards wrote: “BREAKING: an image has leaked showing Trump using a walker moments after he signed an executive order banning states from regulating AI.”
Why It Matters
The AI-generated photo appears to be designed to make a statement about Trump’s executive order that limits state’s abilities to regulate the fast-growing technology.
Trump has long championed AI and argues that state-level regulation will be cumbersome and limit U.S. dominance in the field. Critics contend that the move undermines states’ rights to protect their residents and hands more power to tech companies.
What To Know
The photo of Trump with a walker circulated on social media, with several people quick to point out that despite it appearing to look realistic, it was AI-generated and was not originally published by mainstream media or credited to a photographer.
Other versions of the image were also shared on X, including one of Trump using a gold walker and a video of him walking with it.
The president signed an executive order on Thursday aimed at limiting states from enforcing their own AI regulations.
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At a signing ceremony in the Oval Office, the president said that AI companies "want to be in the United States, and they want to do it here, and we have big investment coming. But if they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you could forget it."
Trump said that "one central source of approval" was needed to avoid regulatory burdens for AI companies, and warned that he’ll withhold broadband funding from states whose AI laws are seen as slowing U.S. progress.
The order also establishes a federal taskforce that will have the "sole responsibility" of challenging states’ AI laws.
The executive order will likely be welcomed by big tech companies, but has been met with criticism from Democrats and activists who argue that states should have rights to enact their own safeguards and protect citizens from AI risks.
What People Are Saying
X user The Age of Genz wrote: "FAKE Videp of Trump with a walker goes viral. The REAL executive order he just signed is way more consequential."
Missouri local candidate Justice Horn wrote on X**: “**BREAKING: An image has leaked showing Trump using a walker moments after he signed an executive order banning states from regulating AI. The image below was created by AI—and not regulating this industry is the last thing we should be doing right now.”
What Happens Next
The executive order will now be implemented, and critics are likely to continue sounding the alarm about the risks of limiting states’ ability to set their own AI safeguards.
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