Google has opened its SynthID Detector to the public globally, allowing users to check whether images, videos and audio clips were generated or altered using artificial intelligence (AI), in a move aimed at improving content verification and trust online.
The announcement was made by Google West Africa’s Communications and Public Affairs Manager, Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, in a statement on Thursday, October 8. According to the company, users with a Google, Apple or OpenAI account can access the tool and upload media files for verification within seconds. The detector identifies invisible digital watermarks embedded in AI-generated content by Google and participating technology companies.
Google said SynthID has been used to watermark more than 180 billion images and videos, alongside 240,000 years’ worth of audio content. The tool can identify AI-generated media from Google and partners, including OpenAI, NVIDIA and Kakao, while Apple is expected to join the initiative. The detector is currently available in English.
Kola-Ogunlade said the tool could be particularly useful to journalists, media organisations and members of the public in Nigeria as the country approaches its next election cycle, providing an additional means of scrutinising suspicious AI-generated content circulating online.
Google introduced SynthID in 2023, initially making the detector available to media professionals before expanding access to the general public as part of efforts to promote greater confidence in an increasingly AI-driven digital environment.
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