Govee says it mistakenly licensed “white supremacy” book pic to sell smart lights

Aurich

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

1779901454758.png


I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
 
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TheJBW

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Can we talk about the fact that "Another Art Book" has the text mirrored (which one might reasonably expect if the image was flipped), but the text "White Supremacy" is not. Given that "Another Art Book" is a real art book, which does not have mirrored text on the cover, that is another indicator that the image is AI slop.

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173 (173 / 0)

citizencoyote

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It's very obvious that whomever was responsible for sourcing the image did not look at it. From the "White Supremacy" book spine labels and backwards cover to the obvious graphical errors that Aurich pointed out that are the hallmark of AI, someone just took a quick glance and said, "Looks good, post it."

Edit: the curved fringe of the blanket is also floating above the floor (and casting a shadow).

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108 (109 / -1)
Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
The front corner of headboard doesn't look right either.

But a dropped ceiling that doesn't go all the way to the wall (kinda what this hallucination looks like) would actually be kinda cool if you were into this "LED splash lighting everywhere" thing. put the lights up in that gap to cast diffuse light down the wall, hiding the LED strip entirely.
 
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132 (132 / 0)
Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
actually the ceiling mismatch is one thing that could point to it not being ai. That mismatch could be caused by a false ceiling or a channel around the top of the ceiling allowing for LED strips to be hidden from view. The lighting on the top of the walls would almost require that, and it's specifically the type of thing that the products are sold for.

ETA: I'm not saying it's a real photo, hell if I know, but I've seen that kind of construction. Also the actual facts of the image are horrific and the fact that this kind of hate makes it through, generated or not, is a frightening view into where we are at.
 
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104 (108 / -4)

rhavenn

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
I've seen ceiling's like that in restaurants / hotels / non-residence buildings. It allows for that "wall" lighting / "warm" lighting..but yes..odd to see it in a home, but I wouldn't call it "fake" just because of that. It would let the curtain rods and stuff "hide" like the image makes it look and honestly, outside of cost, the idea is kinda cool.
 
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54 (55 / -1)

fenris_uy

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
That could just be a recessed wall and roof to put some hidden led strips there.
 
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26 (27 / -1)

nxg

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The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.
It could just be a dropped ceiling, with the lighting and curtain rail inset into the space above it. But I think the books give it away more convincingly.

The article says
it’s worth noting that photographing colorful LEDs accurately presents unique challenges.
That's interesting, and I'm sure I'd like to learn more. It sounds like the sort of challenge that an actual photographer would be delighted to rise to, if the company were willing to pay for one.

I'm surprised the image went unnoticed for so long. I'm sure I'm not the only person who, entering a room or seeing a picture, and seeing books there, will immediately and irresistibly read the spines (and who will try not to Judge).
 
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65 (65 / 0)
actually the ceiling mismatch is one thing that could point to it not being ai. That mismatch could be caused by a false ceiling or a channel around the top of the ceiling allowing for LED strips to be hidden from view. The lighting on the top of the walls would almost require that, and it's specifically the type of thing that the products are sold for.

ETA: I'm not saying it's a real photo, hell if I know, but I've seen that kind of construction. Also the actual facts of the image are horrific and the fact that this kind of hate makes it through, generated or not, is a frightening view into where we are at.
Maybe it's both. A real room that someone told an AI to populate with stuff.
 
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28 (28 / 0)

Rector

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
I have actually seen rooms that have an “indent” in the ceiling all around the perimeter of the room that can hold lighting and curtain rods. It looks to me like this room is supposed to be that sort of room. However it probably is AI generated.
 
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21 (21 / 0)

Aurich

Director of Many Things
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It's very obvious that whomever was responsible for sourcing the image did not look at it. From the "White Supremacy" book spine labels and backwards cover to the obvious graphical errors that Aurich pointed out that are the hallmark of AI, someone just took a quick glance and said, "Looks good, post it."

Edit: the curved fringe of the blanket is also floating above the floor (and casting a shadow).

View attachment 135851
Yeah the more you look the more the telltale signs are there. Like the fact that the LEDs aren't reflecting in the window behind them ...
 
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39 (40 / -1)
As someone who frequents ai clocking / detecting / analyzing communities, this image looks at least year out of date, if you're looking at this and thinking "gee AI images today sure do have a lot of obvious errors" your conclusion is based on outdated data.

Edit: There are regularly ai generated images that have only one or two issues that take a large group of reviewers to spot and some of those issues are only detectable because the image in question is of a real subject or location that can be compared.

The era of being able to reliably determine if an image was generated or edited by ai based only on visual inspection is nearly over.
 
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-4 (19 / -23)
For whatever reason, I feel like the kind of person who keeps books on white supremacy by their bedside as well as a 1950s-style alarm clock probably isn't in the market for smart neon LEDs. Perhaps there's a market overlap I'm missing.
I bought a clock exactly like that. It cost just a couple dollars. I use it to keep my phone away from my bed.
 
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15 (15 / 0)

SixDegrees

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Although using images from stock libraries or generative AI tools can help save money and time and simplify work processes, photographing a real space with real products is a safer and more honest way to showcase products. In Govee’s case, it’s worth noting that photographing colorful LEDs accurately presents unique challenges. But that’s ultimately a problem for the company to solve.

The problem is no one proofread the final image. This is depressingly common nowadays. Somebody gives an image or a document or other ad copy a cursory glance, just assumes it's OK, and off it goes. It used to be commonplace for someone to actually go over anything published with a fine-tooth comb before releasing it - and yes, this includes examining minute details in images. Because even in real images it's possible for small, subtle mistakes to take place - a wedding ring on an unmarried character, somebody's zipper down, a scrap of toilet paper on somebody's shoe - and people used to actually look for such things.

"The AI did it, so it must be perfect" will be the epitaph for the AI Age.
 
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43 (43 / 0)

CalJake

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Based on my experience with them, this kind of laziness seems right on point with Govee. I made the mistake of buying a bunch of their temp./humidity monitors with wifi. A portion of my choice of them was based on the claim they do not sell or provide your info from the Android control app to third parties. Of course after installing the app, I found DuckDuckGo app tracking protection was blocking the sending of essentially all my info to the usual data mining companies. Yep, that was the Govee app. I contacted Govee regarding this, and they vehemently denied their app was doing this. So either they're just completely lying, or they just contracted out the app coding, and have no idea it's actually data mining. Either way, not a company I wish to deal with. Uninstalled the app, no more tracking. Fortunately I can use Home Assistant for the Govee devices.
 
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51 (51 / 0)

MilanKraft

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
100%. Suspected pixel-slop the moment I looked at it.

Probably Grok on at least three levels (the LLM most likely to have those themes in training data, the LLM with the near-zero guardrails, the worst performing LLM).
 
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15 (17 / -2)

Fatesrider

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Who the heck studies these ad images that closely?
It's not a matter of studying them. Its merely a matter of being able to see what's actually there when you look at something.

Most people don't. They allow their minds to trick them into believing there's either nothing there, or something else other than what it actually is, or simply don't parse details of what they see as well as others naturally do.

But for an ad agency to put that out, well, expect to see more of this kind of thing. It's an AI shitstain, with a shitty approval process, probably because the people approving this shit are marketing strategists and NOT artists, working on a deadline in an understaffed advertising department downsized because AI was supposed to seamlessly step in for actual meat sacks.

I noticed it before I read the article, and wondered if that was the actual ad. Apparently, it is. I have no fucking clue from the picture itself what the fuck they're trying to sell, but I'd assume bedding or furniture.

The LIGHTS did NOT make the top five items on that list.

So, not only did they draw my eye away from the product, they had a product placement ad for white supremacy tossed in for good measure. I don't normally picture that kind of bedroom as one a fascist would live in. But they come from all walks of life these days.

That's a fail on a multitude of levels, IMHO. So maybe not using AI's would be a better option for these fuckwits. That way, they have someone they can fire when shit like this happens and have a chance to actually improve their ads in the future with better talent. The take-away here is that they probably won't do shit, and it'll happen again, because $$$ is god almighty these days and no one cares enough about the fascists in the country to actually storm the business HQ and burn it to the ground over something like this. Not that I advocate violence, yet.

But I can foresee a future where something like this will incite it.
 
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29 (29 / 0)
The problem is no one proofread the final image. This is depressingly common nowadays. Somebody gives an image or a document or other ad copy a cursory glance, just assumes it's OK, and off it goes. It used to be commonplace for someone to actually go over anything published with a fine-tooth comb before releasing it - and yes, this includes examining minute details in images. Because even in real images it's possible for small, subtle mistakes to take place - a wedding ring on an unmarried character, somebody's zipper down, a scrap of toilet paper on somebody's shoe - and people used to actually look for such things.

"The AI did it, so it must be perfect" will be the epitaph for the AI Age.

That's not the only problem. There's the problem of the stock photo corp using AI trained on White supremacy images. The problem of the prevalence of White supremacy images on the Internet. The problem of Govee just blaming it unnamed stock photo corp but not saying it would no longer do business with such a treacherous vendor. The problem of White supremacy.
 
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22 (24 / -2)

dtich

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Looks pretty clearly AI generated to me.

The corner of the walls don't meet the ceiling properly, and the top of the curtains just cut off into the ceiling.

View attachment 135846

I'm relatively certain nobody asked for those books to have that title, and it was simply added by the generative AI because these things are stupid parrots that echo the internet, and well ...
well, not to be anti-anti-AI, but i take the ceiling to be a drop-type where there are built-in soffit lights around the whole perimeter, and the curtain rod is mounted up in there. this is a real thing, but does not in any way negate the possibility that this is AI-gen.
 
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16 (17 / -1)
Note that Connie Liu, Govee’s PR manager, didn't say Govee is dropping its unnamed photo library for burning it and offending. I also note that Connie's name implies that she's not White, but gave only the minimum corporate response to White supremacy that would treat her as inferior to the master race. And only the PR manager, no other exec. All that looks to White supremacists as what corporations must still do in public, like a wink and a nod. No actual condemnation of White supremacy.

Connie Liu:
The image was sourced from a third-party licensed library.

However, we recognize that our internal review and approval process did not meet the standard required. We are taking immediate steps to strengthen our processes to ensure this does not happen again.

We sincerely apologize for the offensive content contained in this image. As soon as we became aware of the matter, the image was immediately removed from the Govee website.

We are committed to ensuring all content on our platforms aligns with our core values of respect and integrity, and we take this matter extremely seriously.
 
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-8 (7 / -15)

Fred Duck

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Developer A: We've managed to make our GenAI pictures contain real words!
Developer B: Fantastic! Release it!
Developer A: Ah, but there's a slight issue...
Developer B: RELEASE IT!

___

Connie Liu said:
The image was sourced from a third-party licensed library.
Oh, good. That explains why zero people on your marketing team spent more than one (1) second each looking at it. Also, if it's from a library, what exactly is the image meant to illustrate?

___

Scharon Harding said:
For shoppers, the fiasco may not just be vexing but also a reminder that you can’t trust the flashy (and potentially offensive) images that vendors use to promote gadgets.
You mean to tell me the Audi R8 doesn't really go to pieces as pictured?
 
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23 (23 / 0)
The front corner of headboard doesn't look right either.

But a dropped ceiling that doesn't go all the way to the wall (kinda what this hallucination looks like) would actually be kinda cool if you were into this "LED splash lighting everywhere" thing. put the lights up in that gap to cast diffuse light down the wall, hiding the LED strip entirely.
These recessed ceilings with rim lighting are nothing special, at least in my area of the globe, but the other AI errors clearly show how much care was put into this marketing effort. Guess it's so easy to create, they will just post some other slop instead.
 
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11 (12 / -1)

marsilies

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Yeah the more you look the more the telltale signs are there. Like the fact that the LEDs aren't reflecting in the window behind them ...
Considering they say they sourced the image from a 3rd party library, they may have gotten an image of just the room, and photoshopped their products into it.
 
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