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Yes—with an important qualification: Futurism reported that Virginia Republican lieutenant-governor candidate John Reid staged a campaign video in which he argued with an AI-generated likeness of his Democratic opponent, state senator Ghazala F. Hashmi. The article’s headline calls it “nearly an hour,” but its text describes the YouTube video as 40 minutes long.
What happened in the video?
In a video reported by Futurism on October 23, 2025, Reid stood at a podium and addressed a television screen showing an AI-generated likeness of Hashmi. The event was presented as a debate, and the report says the moderator was also AI-generated. Hashmi herself was not shown participating; the figure on screen was an artificial likeness.
That distinction matters: this was a campaign video staged by Reid, not a live exchange between the two candidates. Futurism does not identify the tools used to create the likeness or describe how the video was produced beyond its account of the staged setup.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteWhy did Reid say he made it?
Reid’s opening text said Hashmi had repeatedly declined his requests to debate. That is the rationale presented in his video, not an independently verified account of whether or how often she declined. The report does not establish the history of debate requests from information independent of Reid’s claim.
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Was it really nearly an hour?
Futurism’s headline says “nearly an hour,” while the body of the October 23, 2025, report describes the YouTube stream as a 40-minute video. Those descriptions differ, so the more specific runtime reported in the article is 40 minutes; “nearly an hour” is the headline’s characterization. Read Futurism’s report.
What does the episode say about AI in political campaigns?
Futurism placed Reid’s video alongside other examples of AI-generated political content, including a separate video involving Donald Trump and a deepfake about Irish presidential candidate Catherine Connolly. Those are separate cases, not part of Reid and Hashmi’s staged debate. The report quotes Connolly calling her deepfake a “disgraceful attempt to mislead voters and undermine our democracy.”
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Virginia political strategist Bob Holsworth, quoted by Futurism from comments to The Washington Post, argued that AI-generated content could become more sophisticated if norms and rules do not emerge. He also compared Reid’s stunt with an AI-generated Trump video. These are Holsworth’s opinions and forecast, not proof of how campaigns will use AI in 2026.
What is confirmed—and what remains unclear?
- Reported: Reid, then a Republican candidate for Virginia lieutenant governor, staged a campaign video featuring an AI likeness of Hashmi, his Democratic opponent and a state senator; Futurism also describes an AI-generated moderator.
- Attributed to Reid: His opening text said Hashmi had declined his debate requests.
- Runtime discrepancy: Futurism’s headline says “nearly an hour,” while its article text calls the stream 40 minutes.
- Not established in the report: Whether Hashmi declined debate requests, which AI tools were used, or the eventual Virginia election outcome.
The account is based on Futurism’s report, which attributes its quoted remarks from Holsworth to The Washington Post; it does not independently verify those details.
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