AI Image Generators Now Create Nearly Undetectable Fakes by Deliberately Lowering Quality

AI image generators now produce nearly undetectable fake images by strategically lowering quality in specific ways, evolving from obviously flawed 256x256 pixel thumbnails with extra fingers to sophisticated fakes that eliminate traditional tells like fuzzy contours and nonsense text.

• AI image generators have dramatically improved since DALL-E's debut less than five years ago, evolving from 256x256 pixel thumbnails with obvious flaws like extra fingers and rubbery limbs to highly realistic fakes that are much harder to detect
• Early AI-generated images contained clear tells such as fuzzy contours, nonsense text on objects, and misplaced elements, but these obvious indicators of artificial creation are becoming increasingly rare
• The technology now creates convincing fake images partly by strategically making image quality slightly worse in ways that paradoxically enhance overall realism and believability