Detroit Locals Dismayed By New ‘Hollywood’-Style Sign After Encountering AI Fake
Image via City of Detroit / Flickr (public domain)
In an effort to showcase its economic rebound during the 2024 NFL Draft, Detroit unveiled a US$400,000 sign along Interstate 94. However, its debut was met with widespread disappointment, and artificial intelligence was to blame.
The controversy stemmed from a social media firestorm ignited by an unofficial, AI-generated image of the proposed display resembling the Hollywood sign. This picture, depicting a grand, towering landmark, was what kept the public’s expectations high. Reality, however, kicked in in the form of eight-foot-tall green letters planted on two-foot cement pedestals.
Today on Brand New (Linked): The people of Detroit are disappointed with a new gateway sign promoted as Hollywood-style landmark. Part of the problem was an unofficial AI rendering that circulated widely and got everyone’s hopes up. https://t.co/R3Z1dthhlt pic.twitter.com/HqdQtK8tM5
— UnderConsideration (@ucllc) April 26, 2024
Image via City of Detroit / Flickr (public domain)
Comparisons to the iconic Hollywood sign were inevitable, leading some to view it as a cheap imitation. Social media, unsurprisingly, became a battleground, with memes and diss tracks taking aim at the sign’s perceived lack of originality.
You think you found the most powerful rap beef and then you find you Gmac Cash put out TWO diss tracks in a week on Detroit’s city sign pic.twitter.com/twqfRcCUL9
— ðŸ¦BUM CHILLUPS AKA SPENCER HALL🦠(@edsbs) April 20, 2024
Mayor Mike Duggan found himself scrambling to manage expectations. He admitted to being initially fooled by the AI-generated image himself, but emphasized that the city never promised such a grandiose design.
Image via City of Detroit / Flickr (public domain)
“I saw a post on Instagram of a spectacular Hollywood sign and I called Brad [Dick, the city’s Chief Operating Officer] and I said, ‘That’s terrific! I had no idea you were thinking that big,’” Mayor Duggan explained at a press conference.
When told the rendering was an AI fake, Duggan became worried that locals would be disappointed the real deal wasn’t as glitzy as they had hoped.
Detroit sign >>>> Hollywood sign pic.twitter.com/2xAftrmFO0
— Evan Fox (@evanfoxy) April 25, 2024
Just a week after the initial installation, DTE Energy stepped in and installed LED lights inside the letters, making the sign a more prominent feature along the freeway, especially after dark. The city plans to place five more signs around the city limits, and these new additions are also expected to be illuminated.
Image via City of Detroit / Flickr (public domain)
Only time will tell if the Motor City monument transcends its rocky debut to become a cherished landmark.
[via Jalopnik, Business Insider, Brand New, Detroit Metro Times, images via various sources]
