Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is back in the political arena—this time with a digital twist. In a new 30-second campaign ad promoting his run for NYC mayor, Cuomo appears performing a series of wildly improbable day jobs: swinging from a skyscraper as a window washer, navigating subway tunnels as a conductor, and even standing in for a Wall Street trader. Spoiler alert: none of it actually happened. The entire ad is stitched together with generative AI deepfakes, complete with a fine-print nod to the digital wizardry at the end.
The ad isn’t just a stunt—though watching a 67-year-old Cuomo clean windows in a safety harness is, objectively, amusing. It’s a pointed metaphor claiming that while he may not be trained for these roles, he is, at least in his view, qualified to lead the city. And thanks to generative tools, creating cinematic proof-of-concept scenarios like this is now both technically and financially feasible.
This campaign marks a growing trend: AI not just as a backend tool but as a front-and-center storytelling device. It’s also a reminder that even in political ads, authenticity is becoming increasingly performative—and programmable.
Read more at AdAge.