Typos, AI claims: The strange story of the award created days before Modi’s Seychelles visit -…
Allegations of AI generation emerged regarding a certificate presented to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Seychelles after an image verification tool detected a watermark
- Incident date
- Jun 2026
- Target
- Narendra Modi
Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Seychelles, controversy arose concerning an official citation for a newly created presidential distinction titled the Guardian of the Blue Horizon. While the award was presented during the nation’s Golden Jubilee celebrations, the document circulated online faced immediate scrutiny due to multiple typographical errors and suspected synthetic origins.
What happened
The award was approved by the Seychelles cabinet on June 24, 2026, just four days before the ceremony. Shortly after the visit, the BJP circulated a citation that contained several spelling errors, including Repubblic and Seycheeles, as well as an unusual spelling of the Latin word opus as OPVS on the official seal.
Social media users suggested the citation was generated using artificial intelligence, a claim that gained traction after OpenAI’s image verification tool reportedly detected a SynthID watermark in the digital image of the certificate. This watermark indicates that the online image file was created or modified by AI, though it does not confirm if the physical document presented to the Prime Minister was synthetic. Neither the Indian Ministry of External Affairs nor the Seychelles State House has published the citation on their official websites, preventing independent verification of the document's authenticity. The incident occurred during a visit that resulted in 19 bilateral outcomes and a USD 175 million economic package for Seychelles.