FACT-CHECK: AI-generated video of tycoon promoting ‘online investment’ spreads

CLAIM: Business Tycoon Lance Gokongwei promoting an online investment vehicle on Facebook.

RATING: FALSE

A fake online advertisement featuring business tycoon Lance Gokongwei, supposedly promoting an online investment through an unnamed app, is actually content manipulated through artificial intelligence.

On April 2, 2025, Facebook page “Scène Prod” posted the video with the caption “D‍o‍n‍’‍t‍ ‍m‍i‍s‍s‍ ‍t‍h‍e‍ ‍o‍p‍p‍o‍r‍t‍u‍n‍i‍t‍y‍ ‍t‍o‍ ‍b‍e‍ ‍a‍m‍o‍n‍g‍ ‍t‍h‍e‍ ‍f‍i‍r‍s‍t‍ ‍t‍o‍ ‍k‍n‍o‍w‍!” alongside a link leading to an inaccessible website.

The fraudulent ad featured a deepfaked Gokongwei stating that the app could help Filipinos earn up to P500,000 without taxes through an investment.

It also included Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who was also deepfaked, endorsing Gokongwei and the project supposedly involving the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The original clip of Gokongwei was taken from a podcast episode uploaded by GoTyme Bank on Sept. 14, 2024, wherein no investment projects were promoted.

The Gokongwei Group released a public advisory regarding the spread of deepfake and AI-manipulated content and their noninvolvement in cryptocurrency projects and financial investments online.

The original clip of Bersamin was taken from the Department of Budget and Management’s (DBM) budget allocation forum on Jan. 24, 2025.

The BSP has no recent press releases or public advisories related to the project.

The Facebook ad has gained more than a million views on Facebook. Michael Hermoso – Bautista

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