Fact Check: Real, Vintage Photo of a Giant Irish Dog?

Claim:

A picture that went viral in September 2023 authentically depicts the "last, giant Irish Greyhound as captured in 1902."

Rating:

The Irish wolfhound, renowned for its large size, is a breed that has captured the hearts of many dog enthusiasts around the world. In September 2023, a photograph allegedly captured in 1902 and depicting what appeared to be such a wolfhound but instead sometimes calling it the "last giant Irish Greyhound" went viral on social media. (We should note there is no "Irish Greyhound" breed; however, greyhounds exist and can be found, among other places, at Ireland's famous racing competitions.)

Although some users claimed the in-question image was generated by AI, others were amazed at the dog's size. For instance, the image was posted on the AI Generated Nonsense Facebook page with the caption, "The last giant Irish grey hound."

We used Google reverse image search to track down the source of the image. One post from Sept. 3, 2023, shared on 9GAG, an online platform and social media website, read, "A good boy, the last giant Irish wolfhound in 1902." However, in the comments section we found a remark from the author's account that admitted the picture was created with Midjourney, a generative artificial intelligence (AI) program:

We then found the image was originally posted on Aug. 31, 2023, on the Facebook group Cursed AI, by Antoine Jo. The group's name and description also indicated the picture was AI-generated:

Moreover, AI or Not and Illuminarty tools confirmed our findings.

(AI or Not screenshot)

If you don't want to be misled by AI-generated images and videos, you should read our tips here.