Food firms take note of rising AI-generated images for refund

Nearly two weeks ago, when Harsh Shah — owner of Mumbai-based bakery Dessert Therapy — was going through the refund claims by users for ‘damaged items’, he found something unusual.

- ANUSHKA BHARDWAJ

One of the customers claimed that her Almond Praline Strawberries Dark Chocolate cake — costing 2,500 — had melted and sought a refund of %1,820.

On a closer look, Shah realised that the image sent to him was morphed using an artificial intelligence (AI) tool.

“There were hints. Strawberries looked different from the ones we use. Moreover, that cake flavour does not have a melting tendency,” says Shah, adding that the user might have received some compensation as the fraud was caught on their level and not by the aggregator.

“Aggregators prefer quick redressal and, in most cases, the entire conversation is done on text, which starts with a chatbot. With the volume of orders and level of checks, it may be easier to slide in such cases from there,” says Shah.

Acknowledging that food complaints are treated with utmost seriousness and trust, Aditya Mangla, chief executive officer (CEO), Zomato, said the platform has employed advanced systems to detect rare misuse. “We've already rolled out safeguards and early-detection models and are scaling them responsibly,” Mangla told Business Standard.