Did Taylor Swift use AI art? 'Life of a Showgirl' orange door videos seem AI-generated
Fans worldwide are expressing disappointment after Taylor Swift allegedly used AI-generated videos to help promote her new album, The Life of a Showgirl.
To be clear, it has neither been confirmed that the videos in question are AI — though it certainly seems that way — nor is it clear that Swift was directly involved in the creation of the videos. The allegedly AI-generated videos surfaced via 12 "orange doors" with QR codes placed in major global cities. Those QR codes led to videos related to Showgirl. It's the classic Easter egg tactic Swift has made famous.
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But once those videos made their way online, people began to notice they seemed to be made with AI. Here's a good breakdown on TikTok about parts of videos that appear to be AI.
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Folks online, including seemingly some Swifties, were disappointed that Swift would use AI in a promotional campaign for Showgirl. Why would an impossibly wealthy artist choose to use AI-generated works rather than pay artists for the actual work that AI poorly replicates?
Swift also famously fought to own her back catalog of music, and using AI — a technology that scrapes other folks' work to create its own content — would seem to run counter to that ethos.
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It's also worth noting that Swift has worked against AI-generated content when it directly affects her. She spoke out in support of Kamala Harris after then-presidential candidate Donald Trump used AI-generated art to suggest Swifties supported him in 2024. Swifties also mobilized to protect Swift after AI-generated deepfakes of the singer surfaced online.
Perhaps the videos rely on (poorly done) visual effects created by humans. But if the videos are actually AI, there are certainly a lot of disappointed people online.
Tim Marcin is an Associate Editor on the culture team at Mashable, where he mostly digs into the weird parts of the internet. You'll also see some coverage of memes, tech, sports, trends, and the occasional hot take. You can find him on Bluesky (sometimes), Instagram (infrequently), or eating Buffalo wings (as often as possible).
