Treasurer Garrity defends controversial campaign ad which uses an AI-generated version of Gov. Shapiro

State Treasurer Stacy Garrity, who is running for the governorship, released a controversial AI-created campaign ad earlier this month.

The ad uses a likeness of Governor Josh Shapiro which speaks about sexual harassment scandals and data centers before disclosing that the video was made with AI around the 45-second mark.

You can watch the ad below:

“Every single thing in that ad is correct, unlike the ads that the governor has run against me, which are categorically false, and full of lies,” Garrity told CBS News on Tuesday. “Everything in there is true.”

Garrity also said she found it ironic that Shapiro “took $5.7 million from data center developers and used that money to run ads against me.”

You can watch her interview with CBS News below:

A spokesperson for Shapiro called the ad “cheap” and “dishonest” in a statement to Axios.

According to a follow-up CBS News article, roughly 12 states require a disclaimer in campaign ads. Currently, there are no laws in Pennsylvania prohibiting deepfakes in political ads or even requiring a disclaimer. A deepfake prohibition bill passed the House but needs Senate approval before it can go to Governor Shapiro.

Last week, Shapiro signed the Artificial Intelligence Deceptive Advertising Act, which requires advertisers to clearly and conspicuously disclose when an advertisement uses artificial intelligence (AI)-generated or AI-modified content in a way that could create a false consumer perception about the nature, origin or authenticity of the goods or services being advertised. You can read more about SB 806 here.

On Thursday, Garrity held a rally at the Whitemarsh Valley Event Center in Fort Washington.

“Pennsylvania’s home to 700,000 veterans, and they deserve a governor who will fight for them as hard as they fought for us,” she said during the event. You can read WHYY’s coverage here.

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Screengrab: Youtube