An AI-generated video featuring Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, Elon Musk and Tim Cook casually eating roadside barbecue in China has gone massively viral across social media platforms.
The clip, which appears to have been created using generative artificial intelligence tools, shows the high-profile figures dressed casually while sitting on small stools at a roadside street food stall. In the video, they are seen eating Chinese skewers, drinking beer, chatting casually, and smoking cigarettes in a setting resembling a late-night Chinese barbecue eatery.
The surreal combination of some of the world’s most recognisable political and technology figures in such an ordinary environment quickly captured public attention online.
Video Spread Rapidly Across Social Media
The AI-generated clip began circulating shortly after Trump’s high-profile visit to China alongside several major American business leaders.
Social media users widely shared the video across platforms including TikTok, X, Instagram, Threads, and Chinese social media channels, with many initially mistaking it for genuine footage due to increasingly realistic AI video generation technology.
Viewers particularly reacted to the contrast between the leaders’ global status and the highly localised street-side setting, complete with folding stools, beer bottles, smoke-filled surroundings, and traditional Chinese barbecue skewers.
Some online comments joked that the scene looked like “a billion-dollar supper gathering” or “the world’s most powerful yakitori meetup”.
AI Videos Becoming Increasingly Realistic
The viral clip also highlights how rapidly artificial intelligence-generated videos have improved in realism over the past year.
Modern AI video tools are now capable of generating highly convincing facial expressions, body movements, lighting effects, and speech patterns using only text prompts or reference images.
Experts have repeatedly warned that increasingly realistic AI-generated media could blur the line between entertainment, satire, misinformation, and fabricated political content.
Although many viewers recognised the clip as parody, others reportedly questioned whether parts of the footage were real due to the natural-looking interactions and cinematic quality.
Trump’s China Visit Fuelled Meme Culture
The viral video emerged shortly after Trump travelled to Beijing for meetings with Xi Jinping focused on trade, artificial intelligence, and geopolitical tensions.
The real-life trip already attracted global attention after executives including Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, and Tim Cook were seen accompanying Trump on the visit.
That unusual gathering of political and tech figures appears to have inspired meme creators and AI artists online, resulting in a flood of edited videos and digitally generated content.
Some versions of the viral clip reportedly added background sounds of sizzling skewers, Mandarin conversations, and beer bottle toasts to make the scene appear even more authentic.
Despite its fictional nature, the video became one of the most widely shared AI-generated political clips circulating online this week, reflecting the growing influence of AI entertainment content in global internet culture.