The Archeological Park of Pompeii has become the latest target of digital deception. Park Director Gabriel Zuchtriegel launched a fierce critique against the irresponsible use of artificial intelligence to generate fake images and fictional narratives surrounding the plaster casts of victims from the 79 A.D. eruption of Mount Vesuvius, labeling the trend "disconcerting and repulsive."
Zuchtriegel pointed to a recent high-profile Instagram post originating from an account attributed to a chemistry professor at the University of Naples "Federico II." The post featured fabricated content regarding the House of the Golden Bracelet. "It is entirely fake: both the imagery and text were generated by AI, and the post linked out to a crowdfunding page designed to generate profit," Zuchtriegel explained. The park has contacted the university to determine whether such actions violate the institution's code of ethics.
While clarifying that he is not against AI technology - which Pompeii actively utilizes for research, site security, and structural monitoring - Zuchtriegel called for an urgent collective dialogue on establishing ethical boundaries to prevent AI from causing "a new form of cultural and educational impoverishment."