Robert De Niro AI image incident — Sep 2026

On September 6, 2026, President Donald Trump engaged in a social media spree on Truth Social, sharing dozens of apparently AI-generated images and making unverified financial claims. The posts, which spanned over 10 hours, included depictions of the president in various heroic and geopolitical contexts, as well as a manipulated image featuring actor Robert De Niro.

What happened

The president posted a series of AI-generated visuals, including one of Robert De Niro holding a shirt that read, "Trump is my president." Other images featured the president on horseback with George Washington and depictions of military events, such as a representation of Iran's defeat. The spree also included geopolitical claims, with AI imagery labeling the Strait of Hormuz as a "new U.S. Territory," the Moon as "Ours," and renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America."

Beyond the visuals, the president claimed to have made "hundreds of billions of dollars" in stocks and holdings for the U.S. while working from the White House. This claim coincided with ongoing scrutiny regarding the "Truth API" feature on his social media platform, which provides early access to market-moving policy announcements. Despite the volume of content, the White House did not provide further details or comments regarding the origin of the AI-generated imagery.