Papa Trump I: Donald’s Virtual Pontificate in the Age of Neural Networks

Donald Trump, US president and master of information sensations, has once again broken through the ceiling of virtual eccentricity by posting on social media an image of himself—now as the head of the Catholic Church. Artificial intelligence, it seems, was inspired not only by the image of the Pope, but also by the classic “Make America Holy Again.”

The portrait turned out surprisingly convincing: white robes, a golden cross, a pensive look in the eyes, and, of course, the signature half-smile that says “everything’s under control.” Strangely enough, the Vatican has yet to comment on this new twist of American papism, perhaps pondering whether they, too, should master neural networks to combat fake pontificates.

Trump, by the way, isn’t using neural image generators for self-promotion for the first time, but here he’s clearly aiming for the eternal. The shots quickly spread across social networks, where users are seriously debating: can the image of Pope Trump be considered a new phase in political meme-making, or is it already time to call a digital age exorcist?

Donald himself, apparently, is delighted with his new “holiness,” and his followers—with the prospect of absolution via Twitter. The world waits: what else will artificial intelligence surprise us with in tandem with a skillful politician?