The Impact of AI-Augmented Image and Video Editing on Social Media Engagement, Perception, and Digital Culture

Abstract

In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has dramatically reshaped the landscape of digital media creation, with particularly profound effects on image and video editing for social media. AI-driven tools enable individuals and organizations to generate or manipulate visual content at unprecedented scale, sophistication, and speed. These innovations facilitate both benign and malicious activities, from the enhancement of everyday photographs and promotional videos to the fabrication of highly realistic but deceptive deepfakes. As social media platforms continue to expand their global user bases and increase their functionalities, the capacity to produce compelling AI-augmented imagery has become vital for influencers, brands, political campaigns, and private users alike. The resulting content can directly influence viewer perceptions, engagement metrics, and trends within digital culture. Moreover, rapidly evolving models—such as generative adversarial networks, diffusion-based systems, and large-scale transformer architectures—amplify the creative potential of everyday users, while also exacerbating ethical concerns surrounding authenticity and privacy. In this paper, we examine the technical foundations of AI-augmented image and video editing, explore the implications of these methods for social media engagement and perception, and analyze their broader cultural significance in contemporary society. By surveying both the state of the art and emerging concerns, we illuminate the critical need for responsible development and governance of AI-driven visual editing tools.