The Telltale Signs: How to Spot an AI-Generated Image

Published on June 10, 2024

In an age where digital reality is increasingly fluid, the line between a real photograph and an AI-generated masterpiece can be incredibly blurry. While AI image generators are becoming more sophisticated by the day, they still have "tells"—subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) mistakes that give them away. Here’s your guide to becoming a digital detective.

1. The Hands Betray the Truth

This is the classic giveaway. AI models have notoriously struggled with human anatomy, especially hands and fingers. Look for:

• An incorrect number of fingers (six fingers are common).
• Fingers that bend in unnatural ways or at odd angles.
• Hands that seem to merge with objects or other body parts.
• Strange, waxy-looking knuckles and joints.

2. Uncanny Valley: Skin and Hair

AI often produces skin that is too perfect. It might lack the natural pores, blemishes, and subtle imperfections of real human skin, giving it a plastic or overly smooth appearance. Hair can also be a tell, often looking like a single block of "spaghetti" strands rather than individual, naturally flowing hairs.

3. Look into the Eyes (and Teeth)

Eyes are the window to the soul, and for AI, they can be a window to its artificial nature. Check for pupils that are different shapes or sizes, or reflections in the eyes that don't match the surrounding environment. Similarly, AI can struggle with teeth, sometimes generating teeth that are oddly shaped, too perfect, or unnaturally aligned.

4. Warped Backgrounds and Gibberish Text

Always check the background of an image. AI can create beautifully rendered subjects but fail on the details behind them. Look for distorted architecture, objects that bend illogically, or repeating patterns that don't make sense. If there's text in the background (like a sign or a book), it's often a garbled, unreadable mess of letters.

5. Illogical Lighting and Shadows

This requires a more critical eye. Analyze the light sources in the image. Do the shadows fall in the correct direction based on the light? Are reflections on surfaces consistent with what should be reflected? AI can sometimes miss these details, resulting in an image where the lighting feels "off."

6. Asymmetry and Bizarre Details

Look for small asymmetries that give the game away. Are earrings mismatched in a way that wasn't intentional? Does a pattern on clothing not align correctly at the seams? These small errors in logic and consistency are often where AI slips up.

7. The Overall "Feeling"

Sometimes, an image just feels... wrong. It might be too perfect, too clean, or have a strange, sterile quality. If your gut tells you something is off, it's worth taking a closer look at the other signs. And of course, the easiest way is to use a tool like The Picture Inspector to analyze it for you!