ARTIFICIAL intelligence (AI) is speedily becoming very popular as more and more people use it to save time. However, it is now impossible to say with certainty whether a particular video clip is fake or real. We know that there are many people who go berserk when they see videos of their womenfolk dancing or even photos in which they are seen seated next to men who are not their close relatives. What if someone posts a fake video or obscene photo of a woman (who has rejected his advances) on social media and sends it to her relatives?

Things have got so bad that it is now impossible to even talk to others without getting into an argument. If, for example, I mention a video of a cult leader saying something controversial, the immediate response is, “It’s probably AI-generated”. Neither side is in a apposition to establish authority of the claim in such cases.

Of course, there is a positive side to it also. In school, we were taught that politics and religious topics should be avoided when talking to friends or strangers. So the only safe thing left is sports, like, say, cricket. I know for sure that I would not be lynched if I say that a particular cricketer should not be selected for the next tour.

Certainly, a more serious problem is likely to surface in a few decades from now, when, fortunately I have no chance of being alive. When robots become increasingly like humans in appearance, how will someone know if the man or woman talking to them is real?

Shakir Lakhani
Karachi

Published in Dawn, January 5th, 2026