In the age of generative AI, not all is what it seems.
From photorealistic videos of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s head grotesquely poking out of a toilet to AI chatbots that can blaze through a Turing Test without raising suspicion, it’s never been harder to distinguish between reality and a fiction dreamed up by an AI.
Still, some instances of AI use still stand out like a sore thumb. Take, for instance, this Zillow listing for a single-family rental home in Detroit, Michigan.
A horribly mangled AI rendition shows the two-story building in a far-too-flattering light. As artist DeAnn Wiley quickly sleuthed out, reality — as seen in Google Street View — couldn’t be more different.
Like this had me screaming. This the pic in the listing v.s what shows up on google maps. 😂 https://t.co/8fmJt9b6zF pic.twitter.com/ybpPPlPXWy — I appreciate you. (@DeeLaSheeArt) October 6, 2025
The AI-yassified version of the house is smoothed over to a ridiculous degree, is missing a concrete footpath, misplaces entire trees, and even features an entirely different roofline — a galling example of real estate and staging companies using AI to lure in customers.
“The building structure is completely different,” Wiley argued.
“This is crazy,” another user commented. “We live in an era of house catfishing.”
Heavily edited images of the house’s interior, which are arguably more important to prospective renters than the house’s curb appeal, don’t fare much better. The images feature nonsensically shaped carpets, among other AI atrocities.
“So I’m noticing, as I look at houses to rent, that landlords are using AI to stage the pictures but the AI is also cleaning up the walls, paint, windows, and stuff in the process,” Wiley tweeted, “so when you go look in person, it looks way more worn and torn than the pics would show.”
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