Australian social media influencer Lily Jay is facing serious scrutiny after an ABC News Verify investigation found that content relating to her charity, the Lily Jay Foundation, appears to be AI-generated or artificially enhanced.
Jay, who has amassed nearly 3 million followers on Instagram, 2.4 million on TikTok, and half a million subscribers on YouTube, has built a public profile around humanitarian work in conflict zones and developing nations, including Gaza, Sudan, and Uganda. The ABC investigation raises significant doubts about the authenticity of that work.
Among the most notable findings, a video in which Jay claims to have established an orphanage in Uganda contains visual signs of AI manipulation. Investigators concluded she appears to have been digitally inserted into the footage.
ABC News Verify was unable to find any independent material corroborating the existence of the orphanage.
Ugandan government officials said they had no record of it being registered, and aid workers and organizations operating in the country said they had never heard of the foundation. It is illegal in Uganda to operate an orphanage without registering it with the government.
After ABC sent questions to the foundation and received no response, a registration for a Lily Foundation Limited was subsequently lodged on the Ugandan government website. Its listed status was “not compliant.”
The investigation also flagged a video of Jay standing alongside a truck reportedly delivering aid to Gaza. A sign that flickers across her hand in the footage is described by investigators as a telltale sign of digital manipulation.
The foundation additionally claimed to have opened a bakery in Gaza, but investigators were unable to geolocate it or find any corroborating evidence of its existence.
ABC News Verify also examined a humanitarian award the foundation publicly announced Jay had received. Digital analysis determined the photographs were AI-generated and that the award itself does not exist.
The press release announcing the award came from a PR company called Real Media Group, which listed Jay as a client on its website, while she appears on its team page as co-founder. That website has since gone offline.
The foundation’s own website has drawn attention as well. Fine print reveals it is not a registered charity, describing itself instead as “a next-generation social enterprise and high-speed humanitarian logistics firm.” As a result, it is not legally required to declare receipts or expenditure. Jay does not appear in Australian government corporate records for the foundation.
