An AI-generated video of U.S. President Donald Trump announcing a ban on Tesla production in the United States is shared as real
U.S President Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk are embroiled in a heated public feud. The clash began after Musk slammed Trump’s new tax-and-spending bill, which cuts EV subsidies and increases the national debt. In response, Trump fired back with threats to cancel federal contracts with Musk’s companies. The situation has only escalated since then, with Trump openly distancing himself from Musk and warning of “serious consequences” if he supports Democrats in the upcoming midterms. Musk, meanwhile, has hinted at launching a new political movement, turning what began as a policy disagreement into a full-blown ideological battle.
Amidst this, a video going viral on social media platforms (here, here, and here) shows U.S. President Donald Trump announcing an immediate ban on the production of Tesla vehicles in the United States. Let’s verify the truth behind the video in this article.
Claim: The video shows U.S. President Donald Trump announcing an immediate ban on Tesla vehicle production in the United States amidst the feud with Elon Musk.
Fact: The viral video is AI-generated and was posted by a parody content creator known for AI lip-sync videos. AI detection tools confirmed the audio was fake. The visuals are from the Trump Honors Elon Musk on Final Day at White House video. No credible reports or official sources support the claim that U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an immediate ban on Tesla vehicle production in the United States. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
To verify the claim, we conducted an internet search using relevant keywords. However, we found no credible reports confirming that U.S. President Donald Trump announced an immediate ban on Tesla vehicle production in the United States. We did come across reports (here, here, and here) stating that Trump no longer wants the Tesla Model S he had purchased to show support for Tesla and Elon Musk.
We then conducted a reverse image search of the keyframes from the viral video, which led us to an Instagram post featuring the same video (archived) on the handle @dangerousaireturns, dated 08 June 2025. Upon reviewing the profile, we found that the creator regularly uploads AI-generated parody content. We also found his YouTube and Facebook accounts, where he clearly states that the page features AI-generated lip-sync content.
We further ran the video through the HIVE AI detection tool to verify its authenticity. The results indicated a 99.8% likelihood that the audio was AI-generated. Additionally, we used another tool, Deepfake-o-meter, which also confirmed that the video was created using AI.
We also found the original video uploaded on the YouTube channel of ABC 10 News on 31 May 2025, titled Trump Honors Elon Musk on Final Day at White House – Full Video. The video description stated that President Donald Trump bid farewell to Elon Musk in the Oval Office, recognising his impact as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk, known for his leadership at Tesla, SpaceX, and X, was credited with the DOGE efforts and cutting billions in federal spending. Though controversial, Musk’s tenure was described as one of the most significant government reform efforts in modern U.S. history.
Nowhere in the entire video did Trump announce a ban on Tesla vehicle production or mention such a ban. We also reviewed the transcript of the press conference, but found no reference to Trump speaking about any ban.
To sum up, an AI-generated video of U.S. President Donald Trump announcing a ban on Tesla production in the United States is shared as real.