#FactCheck -AI-Edited Video Falsely Attributes Beauty Parlour Remark to PM Modi in Fuel Conservation Speech
Executive Summary
Amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, a video has been circulating on social media claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged women not to visit beauty parlours as part of an appeal related to fuel conservation. Users are widely sharing the clip as genuine. However, a fact-check by CyberPeace Research Wing has found the claim to be false. The research revealed that the original video, which discussed saving petrol, diesel and cooking gas, has been digitally edited using AI tools and shared with a misleading narrative.
Claim
An Instagram user shared the viral video on May 15, 2026, claiming that the Prime Minister advised women against visiting beauty parlours.
Fact Check
A keyword-based search on Google did not return any credible media reports supporting the viral claim. To verify the video, keyframes were extracted and run through reverse image search. The original footage was traced to the official YouTube channel of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, uploaded on May 10, 2026.
The video shows a rally held in Hyderabad, where the Prime Minister appealed to the public to save fuel by adopting work-from-home practices, promoting swadeshi goods, and refraining from purchasing gold for one year. However, nowhere in the full video is there any mention of advising women not to visit beauty parlours.
Further analysis also raised suspicion that the viral clip had been digitally altered using AI tools. The video was scanned using the HIVE Moderation AI detection tool, which indicated that it is approximately 88% likely to be AI-generated or manipulated.
Conclusion
The viral video is misleading. The original speech by Prime Minister Narendra Modi about conserving petrol, diesel and cooking gas has been edited using AI tools and circulated with a false claim targeting women visiting beauty parlours.
Related Blogs
Artificial intelligence is growing at a rapid pace, with startups promising breakthroughs in industries and attracting billions in investment. Among these was Builder.ai, a London-based company founded in 2016 by an Indian entrepreneur. Once valued at over $1.5 billion, it was known for its game-changing platform that could let anyone build custom apps quickly and affordably with the help of AI.
Yet in 2025, Builder.ai collapsed dramatically, filing for bankruptcy across multiple countries and laying off nearly 80% of its workforce. What was once a celebrated unicorn has become a cautionary tale, exposing not only the risks of hype-driven growth in AI but also inflicting reputational damage on Indian founders in the global startup ecosystem.
The Rise: Big Promises, Big Investors
Builder.ai branded itself as a no-code/low-code app development platform, where its AI assistant “Natasha” would guide customers in creating apps without technical expertise. The pitch was simple and attractive: app development was made “as easy as ordering pizza.” The story resonated with major investors. Backed by SoftBank, Microsoft, and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, Builder.ai raised more than $450 million. It scaled rapidly, positioning itself as one of Europe’s most promising AI startups.
The Cracks Appear
Behind the glamour, the first cracks appeared as early as 2019, when The Wall Street Journal reported that Builder.ai’s platform depended far more on human engineers than on the AI automation it advertised. In reality, the much-hyped AI assistant “Natasha” was often just “a guy instead”, i.e., skilled developers in India manually writing code behind the scenes on whose backs the company expanded aggressively.
The real blow came from Builder.ai’s finances. The company was accused of inflating revenue figures by 300%, with alleged use of round-tripping tactics involving fake invoices that inflated financials. While it publicly projected revenues of $220 million in 2024, its actual figure was closer to $55 million. When this reality surfaced, investor confidence was lost quickly, and the company’s liabilities ballooned to nearly $100 million, with less than $ 10 million in assets remaining.
Collapse and Legal Scrutiny
By 2025, the company’s foundations had crumbled. The founder stepped down as CEO but retained the unusual title of “Chief Wizard.” Massive debts to AWS, Microsoft, and other partners mounted into the hundreds of millions. Assets were seized, and the company filed for bankruptcy in the U.S., UK, India, and the UAE.
For clients, the collapse meant abandoned projects. For employees, around 1,000 of them, it meant sudden unemployment. And for investors, it was a devastating loss. The Securities and Exchange Commission and U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York have since launched investigations into potential fraud and investor misrepresentation.
Reputational Damage: Impact on Indian Founders
Perhaps the most enduring consequence of Builder.ai’s downfall is the hit to the credibility of Indian founders on the global stage.
For years, Indian entrepreneurs have earned trust in global tech circles, with leaders heading companies from Google to Microsoft. Indian-led startups abroad were viewed as reliable, innovative, and growth-driven. Builder.ai’s collapse disrupts this narrative.
The allegations of inflated revenue, AI exaggeration, and questionable governance risk reinforcing skepticism among global investors regarding Indian organisational ethics. For other Indian founders seeking international capital, the road has now become tougher: stricter due diligence, harsher scrutiny of claims, and slower trust-building.
This reputational damage arrives at a critical time when India is positioning itself as a global hub for AI and leads the world in AI skill penetration. Rather than highlighting the strength of India’s entrepreneurial and talent ecosystem, the fall of Builder.ai has drawn attention to the risks of overpromising and underdelivering.
Conclusion
The fall of Builder.ai is more than the bankruptcy of one AI unicorn. It is a warning to companies against chasing hyper growth fueled by the riding of the AI wave. While the company’s downfall exposed flaws in governance and accountability, its deeper impact lies in how it dented trust. To drive AI and technology innovation, startups must move beyond flashy valuations and commit to authentic innovation, transparency, and financial integrity.
References
- https://www.moodys.com/web/en/us/insights/lending/moodys-early-warning-in-action-builder-ai.html#:~:text=Despite%20marketing%20itself%20as%20an,fake%20invoices%20that%20inflated%20financials.
- https://today-innovation.webflow.io/unveiling-the-power-of-natasha-an-ai-assistant-of-builder-ai-to-revolutionize-app-generation
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/builder-ais-shocking-450m-fall-170009323.html
- https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2108810
- https://www.cnbctv18.com/technology/how-a-london-based-startups-artificial-ai-gambit-backfired-ws-l-19613692.htm#
.webp)
Executive Summary
A video showing a monkey allegedly saving the life of a sleeping child is rapidly going viral on social media. In the clip, a monkey can be seen picking up a child sleeping on a mat under a tree and moving the child away moments before a heavy tree branch falls at the same spot. Social media users are sharing the video as a “miracle of nature” and praising the emotional sensitivity and instincts of animals. However, research conducted by CyberPeace Research Wing found that the viral video is not real and was created using artificial intelligence tools.
Claim
The caption accompanying the viral post states:“In a shocking incident, a monkey was seen stepping in to save an innocent child sleeping under a tree from imminent danger. People nearby were stunned by the scene. It is being claimed that the monkey sensed the danger around the child and tried to protect him. The unusual incident has now gone viral on social media, with many saying that emotions and compassion are not limited to humans, animals can also understand feelings.”
The video has been widely shared across social media platforms
- https://www.instagram.com/reels/DYMvhRPTcCA/
- https://archive.ph/https://www.instagram.com/reels/DYMvhRPTcCA/
Fact Check
To verify the authenticity of the video, we extracted keyframes from the clip and conducted a reverse image search. During the research, we found the same video uploaded on May 8, 2026, on an Instagram page named Instagram user “mojilo_vandro.” The caption of the original upload did not provide any factual context and presented the video in a dramatic, miracle-like manner.
We further examined the Instagram account and found that it regularly posts several AI-generated videos featuring monkeys performing heroic or emotional acts. Importantly, the account owner has also identified themselves as an “AI video creator” in the bio section.
To further analyze the clip, we tested it using the AI detection tool Hive Moderation. The tool’s analysis classified the viral video as 85.6% likely to be AI-generated. We also checked the clip using another AI detection platform, Deepfake-o-meter. Its AVSRDD (2025) detection model flagged the video as potentially AI-generated with a 100% confidence score.
Conclusion
The evidence gathered during our research clearly shows that the viral video claiming to show a monkey saving a sleeping child from a falling tree branch is not authentic. The clip was created using AI-generated visual techniques and does not depict a real incident.
Executive Summary:
The video that allegedly showed cars running into an Indian flag while Pakistan flags flying in the air in Indian states, went viral on social media but it has been established to be misleading. The video posted is neither from Kerala nor Tamil Nadu as claimed, instead from Karachi, Pakistan. There are specific details like the shop's name, Pakistani flags, car’s number plate, geolocation analyses that locate where the video comes from. The false information underscores the importance of verifying information before sharing it.
Claims:
A video circulating on social media shows cars trampling the Indian Tricolour painted on a road, as Pakistani flags are raised in pride, with the incident allegedly taking place in Tamil Nadu or Kerala.
Fact Check:
Upon receiving the post we closely watched the video, and found several signs that indicated the video was from Pakistan but not from any place in India.
We divided the video into keyframes and found a shop name near the road.
We enhanced the image quality to see the shop name clearly.
We can see that it’s written as ‘Sanam’, also we can see Pakistan flags waving on the road. Taking a cue from this we did some keyword searches with the shop name. We found some shops with the name and one of the shop's name ‘Sanam Boutique’ located in Karachi, Pakistan, was found to be similar when analyzed using geospatial Techniques.
We also found a similar structure of the building while geolocating the place with the viral video.
Additional confirmation of the place is the car’s number plate found in the keyframes of the video.
We found a website that shows the details of the number Plate in Karachi, Pakistan.
Upon thorough investigation, it was found that the location in the viral video is from Karachi, Pakistan, but not from Kerala or Tamil Nadu as claimed by different users in Social Media. Hence, the claim made is false and misleading.
Conclusion:
The video circulating on social media, claiming to show cars trampling the Indian Tricolour on a road while Pakistani flags are waved, does not depict an incident in Kerala or Tamil Nadu as claimed. By fact-checking methodologies, it has been confirmed now that the location in the video is actually from Karachi, Pakistan. The misrepresentation shows the importance of verifying the source of any information before sharing it on social media to prevent the spread of false narratives.
- Claim: A video shows cars trampling the Indian Tricolour painted on a road, as Pakistani flags are raised in pride, taking place in Tamil Nadu or Kerala.
- Claimed on: X (Formerly known as Twitter)
- Fact Check: Fake & Misleading
