Four hours into his annual press conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin received a video-based question from what seemed like an AI-generated version of himself. The synthetic doppelgänger asked the real Putin about body doubles and his thoughts on artificial intelligence.
“Vladimir Vladimirovich,” the double said, according to a Reuters report and translation. “Hello. I am a student at St. Petersburg State University. I want to ask, is it true you have a lot of doubles?”
“And also,” the double continued, “How do you view the dangers that artificial intelligence and neural networks bring into our lives?”
“I see you may resemble me and speak with my voice,” the real Putin said after appearing to hesitate. “But I have thought about it and decided that only one person must be like me and speak with my voice, and that will be me.”
“That is my first double, by the way,” Putin added.
Officials and media have previously speculated about Putin using body doubles for public appearances due to health and security reasons.
In November 2023, Japanese researchers claimed several versions of Putin exist after analyzing body movements, facial recognition and voice comparisons.
The Kremlin has denied these accusations at every turn.
Putin admitted he’s been offered the use of body doubles for security reasons in the past. In a 2020 interview with a Russian news agency, Putin said he was presented with an opportunity to use a body double during Russia’s second war against Chechnya in the early 2000s — but he claims he declined it.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
