Five Simple Ways To Determine

Whether A Video Is Generative AI

Five Smart Ways to Spot If a Video Was Made by Generative AI

Learn five simple, effective ways to detect AI-generated videos, from lip-sync errors to emotional mismatches. Stay protected from deepfakes and misinformation.

Videos dominate the internet, whether it’s sports clips, trending reels, memes, or viral news. Nearly 80% of all internet traffic today comes from video content. And now, generative AI is adding fuel to that fire.

According to Grand View Research, AI-generated videos were already worth $555 million in 2023. That number is expected to skyrocket to $1.96 billion by 2028. But as these tools grow more powerful, so do the risks they pose.

From lighthearted deepfakes to dangerous misinformation, AI-generated videos have triggered everything from privacy violations to national security threats. In response, states like California have passed early laws to tackle deepfakes, though these face legal hurdles.

Until laws catch up, the best defence is awareness. Here are five practical ways to detect whether the next video you see is the work of artificial intelligence.

1. Lip Movements Don’t Match the Speech

One of the easiest giveaways? Misaligned lip-syncing.

If a person’s lip movements don’t line up with the audio, like watching a dubbed foreign movie, you’re likely watching an AI-generated video. This is especially true when both the audio and video are in the same language. These subtle mismatches often reveal the video’s artificial nature.

2. Watch the Eyes and Face Closely

Another red flag is unnatural blinking. In real life, people blink irregularly, especially during conversations. AI-generated people often blink at odd intervals, too frequently or not at all.

Facial expressions may also appear too smooth or robotic. Look out for minimal eyebrow movement or a frozen smile. These are common AI glitches that current technology still struggles to correct.

3. Use AI-Video Detection Tools

Don’t rely on your eyes alone, there are tools built to spot AI-generated videos:

• Deepware Scanner: This tool analyses facial tics and frame inconsistencies to flag deepfakes.

• InVid Plugin by WeVerify: Recommended by the Poynter Institute, this Chrome extension gives you an instant toolbox for video forensics.

It’s smart to use more than one detector. If one flags the video as AI-generated, confirm the result with a second tool before concluding.

4. Notice Background Flickering or Visual Glitches

AI video tools still struggle with the background and spatial depth. You might see odd shadows, flickering lights, or warping scenery behind the main subject.

These small distortions, often missed at first glance, are telltale signs that the video was generated using artificial rendering. While these limitations are improving, they remain one of the easiest ways to spot AI content.

5. Something Just Feels… Off

Perhaps the most overlooked clue is your instinct. AI videos may look real at first, but they often carry subtle emotional mismatches.

For example, a person may smile while delivering sad news, or they may speak with a tone that doesn’t match their facial reaction. These tiny inconsistencies cause what’s called “emotional dissonance”, making viewers feel something is wrong even if they can’t say what.

Why This Matters

We process video 60,000 times faster than text, and we tend to retain 95% of what we see versus just 10% of what we read. That’s why videos, real or fake, are so influential.

As AI-generated content grows, so does the threat of misinformation. Learning to identify deepfakes and AI content helps you stay informed, avoid manipulation, and protect your privacy.

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