AI-Generated Persona 'Dona Maria' Fuels Political Polarization in Brazil
An AI-generated persona named Dona Maria, created using Google's Gemini, has gone viral on Instagram by posting videos criticizing Brazilian President Lula and the Supreme Court. The account reportedly reaches millions of interactions with AI-generated deepfake videos and has fueled political polarization around tariff disputes during a period of heightened electoral tension in Brazil.
What happened
Dona Maria is an AI-generated avatar depicting a Black elderly woman created using Google's Gemini tools that posts videos on Instagram criticizing Brazilian President Lula and judges of the Supreme Court (STF).
A video posted on 10 July 2025 criticizing Lula's response to Trump's tariff threats received 8.8 million views and over 23,000 comments on Instagram, with reach comparable to deputies and public figures.
Reported impact
The content has fueled political polarization between supporters of Lula and the Bolsonaro faction during a period of electoral tension in Brazil.
Comments on the videos expressed divided reactions, with some supporters calling for Dona Maria to debate Lula while others criticized the profane language used in the posts.
Index analysis
The account uses AI-generated deepfake video technology to create a synthetic persona that delivers political commentary in colloquial Portuguese.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.