Footage of man hurling insults at robot is filmed in Dubai, not India

Published on February 26, 2026 at 06:49
2 min read
By Devesh MISHRA, AFP India

As top tech CEOs and heads of state met at a global AI summit in India in February 2026, a video circulated on social media with a false claim it showed a man hurling abuse at a robot on display at the venue. It was in fact filmed at a different event in the United Arab Emirates. The clip's original uploader confirmed to AFP that his clip was unrelated to the summit in New Delhi.

"This happened during the AI summit. Our country, India, can only compete with a country like China in terms of childbearing," reads a Hindi-language X post published on February 18, 2026.

The attached video shows a person conversing with a robot through a microphone before asking it to reply to a sexist slur in Urdu, which the robot declines.

Screenshot of the false X post taken on February 24, 2026, with a red X added by AFP

The India AI Impact Summit brought together global tech firms and investors, but it also drew controversy after an Indian professor claimed a Chinese-made robot dog on display was developed by her university (archived link).

Critics have also said the summit's main statement -- which does not include concrete commitments to regulate the technology and instead highlights several voluntary, non-binding initiatives -- is another round of "generic voluntary promises" and that it does not meaningfully protect the public (archived link).

The video was also shared alongside similar claims on Facebook and Instagram.

User comments show they believed the footage was filmed at the AI summit in New Delhi.

One user wrote: "Modi organised such a big AI summit to showcase the country's tech capabilities, but because of such people we get a bad name."

"Indian men are always abusive even at such a big AI event," reads another comment.

But the video is unrelated to the event -- it was in fact filmed in Dubai.

A reverse image search on Google using the clip's keyframes found an identical Instagram video published on February 17 with a caption that reads: "Robot shocked what I said, Chaudhary Kashif Zameer" and a "Dubai" hashtag (archived link).

Screenshot comparison of the false X post (L) and the Instagram post

The video was uploaded by Instagram user Kashif Zameer, who confirmed to AFP that he is the man seen in the footage.

"This video was filmed in Dubai and has nothing to do with India. I am from Pakistan and recorded it while visiting Dubai," he said on February 23.

Subsequent keyword searches identified the robot as Ameca unveiled during the Dubai AI Week at the Museum of the Future in April 2025 (archived here and here).

It can also be seen in other social media posts taken at the museum (archived here and here).

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