The AI fitness instructors selling unreal gains

The AI fitness instructors selling unreal gainsImage caption, A picture of three AI fitness instructors that our research identifiedByKatie Gornall, BBC Sport correspondent and Sarah Dawkins, BBC Sport senior journalistPublished12 minutes agoIf you use social media you've probably seen them - polished fitness videos promising dramatic body transformations in weeks.They show chiselled physiques, striking before‑and‑after images and claims that you can look years younger by following a simple routine.The results often look too good to be true.In many cases, they are.A BBC investigation has uncovered misleading fitness adverts featuring AI‑generated characters that breach UK advertising rules.Many adverts also failed to make clear that the people featured were not real.And why were they doing it? To sell a subscription to a fitness app.So how easy is it to tell whether the person giving fitness advice exists? And does it matter?'Hard to tell who to believe'AI content has flooded social media feeds in the past couple of years, and videos promoting exercise and online fitness programmes are becoming increasingly common.Many of the adverts flagged to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) by the BBC featured AI‑generated characters claiming to have followed workout programmes themselves. They also show transformations experts say are scientifically implausible in such short timeframes.The videos promise users they can change their bodies in weeks, "look 20 years younger", or "lose 40lb in one month".Once users engage with exercise or fitness content, algorithms quickly flood their feeds with similar material.Prof Andy Miah, an AI expert from the University of Salford, says the trend is "huge" and those scrolling are drawn in because they are looking for advice."People are looking for solutions to their health, their fitness, their looks," he says. "There's always been an appetite for that kind of content...