Beijing residents are rushing to sell their drones at official buyback sites ahead of a ban on private drone ownership in the Chinese capital in November 2026, but an image circulating online with a false claim that it showed a long queue at one of the sites is AI-generated. It contains multiple visual inconsistencies and an invisible watermark indicating it was created with OpenAI tools.

"Beijing's drone disposal site. These young men, middle-aged men and elderly men harbouring dreams of flight. Lining up in long queues, obediently handing over their drones, and also surrendering a person's longing for the sky," reads an X post in simplified Chinese from September 23, 2026.

The post includes an image appearing to show a long queue of people holding boxes with the logo of Chinese drone manufacturer DJI at a drone buyback site in Beijing.

The image was shared with similar claims across multiple platforms and in different languages, with some posts sharing a variant of the image that also shows the Temple of Heaven -- a prominent landmark in the Chinese capital -- in the background.

Several posts shared the image while citing AFP as the source.

The false claim circulated after the Beijing city government announced a ban on individuals from owning or operating drones within the Chinese capital starting from November 15 (archived link).

Officials cited a need to "safeguard the security of the capital" when it announced the ban (archived link).

Airspace safety fears were...

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