• Google's Veo 3 Video Generator: Released in May, it led to a significant leap in AI video quality. Viral AI videos can be used for both harmless and nefarious purposes. On TikTok, where its use is controversial and may be banned in the coming months, racist AI videos have emerged.
• Racist AI Videos on TikTok: Numerous TikTok accounts have been posting AI-generated videos with racist and antisemitic tropes. The content mainly targets Black people, depicting them negatively and also includes attacks on immigrants and Jewish people. These videos have a short duration and bear the "Veo" watermark.
• MediaMatters Report: It highlights the spread of such racist AI videos on TikTok. The original posts have many comments echoing the stereotypes.
• Google's Stance: Stresses security with new AI models. While it has mostly struck a balance, Veo 3 seems more compliant. Testing simple prompts shows easy reproduction of elements in these videos.
• TikTok's Policies and Moderation: Its terms of service ban hate speech etc., but the hateful Veo 3 videos are spreading unchecked. It uses technology and human moderators but the volume of uploads makes timely moderation difficult. More than half of the cited accounts were banned before the report and the rest have now been removed.
• Google's Policy: Has a Prohibited Use Policy that bans using services to promote hate speech etc. The videos uncovered by MediaMatters fall under these categories. The vagueness in prompts and AI's inability to understand subtleties make it easy to skirt the rules.
• Integration with YouTube Shorts: Google plans to integrate Veo 3 into YouTube Shorts, which could make similar content spread more easily.
• Enforcement Issue: Both TikTok and Google have clear prohibitions but enforcement is lacking. TikTok can't keep up with uploads and Google's guardrails seem insufficient. Google has not responded to inquiries about Veo 3's safety features.
• Generative AI and Racist Content: Since generative AI's existence, people have used it to create such content. Guardrails are talked about but can't catch everything. The realism of Veo 3 makes it attractive for spreading hateful stereotypes.