He submitted an AI image to a photography competition and won – then rejected the award

A photographer from Germany says he won a competition by submitting an image not taken with his camera – but created using artificial intelligence. Boris Eldagsen says he chose to be a "cheeky monkey" and submit an image made by artificial intelligence to spark a debate about the use of AI in the industry.

Eldagsen submitted a portrait titled "Pseudomnesia | The Electrician" to the Sony World Photography Awards, saying the competition allowed the use of "any device." He was selected as one of the many winners in the competition's creative open category. However, he refused the prize at a ceremony earlier this month. 

"Thank you for selecting my image and making this a historic moment, as it is the first AI-generated image to win in a prestigious international PHOTOGRAPHY competition," he said in a statement, posted on his website, "How many of you knew or suspected that it was AI generated? Something about this doesn't feel right, does it?"