People Accuse Olympics of Digitizing a Child's Drawing With AI For Their New Mascot

From the temporary pauses in ancient wars to the focus on celebrating human physical and mental accomplishments, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to say the Olympic Games have always prioritized humanity's achievements first and foremost.

That's why many were taken aback by the purported anti-human approach to the new mascot for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games, accusing the IOC of using AI to digitize a design created by a 16-year-old student.

The image you see above shows the original drawing by Ndeye Mariama Diop from Senegal – the host country of the upcoming Games – selected as the official mascot.

Named Ayo, the lion was inspired by the cultures of Senegal, reflected in the many meticulous details of the artwork. "A brilliant concept – what could possibly go wrong?" one might wonder. Well, then came the Olympics' digital version of Ayo, prompting some to ask, "Ayo, what's this AI slop?" Have a look:

Missing much of the original's detail and appearing far more generic, simple, and boring, the Olympics' digital version faced heavy criticism online, with hundreds accusing the committee of using AI to convert the drawing from paper to digital.

While it could have been dismissed as the mistakes of the artist commissioned by the IOC, the subsequent video trailer featuring Ayo made many believe that no artist, besides Ndeye, was even involved here, as the trailer was almost entirely AI-generated – something even the Olympics had to admit.

Although, as usual, there's been no official confirmation that Ayo in particular was recreated using AI, you can watch the trailer and judge for yourself:

Recently, Coca-Cola also faced a similar reaction online for their AI-generated Christmas ad – which some succinctly labeled "the most profitable commercial in Pepsi's history" – further complicated by the comments shared by Pratik Thakar, Head of Generative AI at Coca-Cola (yes, that's a real position). You can read what Thakar had to say about the company's use of AI by clicking this link.

So, what's your take on companies and organizations that clearly have the funds to hire flesh-and-blood artists but still go with AI-generated images and videos? Share your thoughts down in the comments below!

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