Climate disinformation using AI-generated content has surged 267% ahead of COP30, with fake videos and false narratives undermining climate action
WASHINGTON: AI-generated disinformation is increasingly influencing perceptions ahead of the COP30 climate summit in the Amazonian city of Belem.
A new report by the Coalition Against Climate Disinformation reveals a 267% surge in COP-related falsehoods from July to September, totaling over 14,000 examples.
One widely-shared video falsely depicting massive flooding in the host city was entirely fabricated using artificial intelligence.
“The reporter doesn’t exist, the people don’t exist, the flood doesn’t exist, and the city doesn’t exist,” stated the Observatory for Information Integrity.
Despite researchers flagging the undisclosed AI content, TikTok has not removed the misleading video.
Several other videos incorrectly suggested Belem was unfit to host the UN climate conference, using footage from Tbilisi, Georgia and recycled clips from two years ago.
Earlier this year, AFP investigated a fake document falsely attributed to Elon Musk’s Grok 3 AI that wrongfully dismissed IPCC climate models.
Recent research shows more than 80% of people want stronger climate action, with 69% willing to contribute 1% of their monthly income.
Yet both UN Environment Assembly attendees and the general public significantly underestimate this public willingness to mobilize.
“This is the impact of climate disinformation,” CAAD said, noting that “Big Carbon’s spending and Big Tech’s algorithms are preventing us from seeing and hearing one another online.”
False narratives can also lead to intimidation of scientists and activists, according to Rio de Janeiro State University professor Carlos Milani.
“Climate denial in Brazil is pushed most explicitly by far-right figures, a small group of anti-environmentalist activists and ultra-conservative leaders,” he noted.
The United Nations and governments are beginning to address how disinformation spreads through new regulatory measures.
The European Union’s Digital Services Act aims to increase transparency and accountability among platforms and advertisers.
With information integrity now on the UN agenda for the first time, “we’re finally headed in the right direction,” CAAD concluded. – AFP
