The Queensland opposition has used artificial intelligence to create a fake video of Steven Miles busting a move to a popular Ne-Yo song as election campaigning in the state ramps up.

The 14-second TikTok, which was marked by the LNP as AI-generated content, was posted last week, making fun of the premier for posting videos of him making his lunch.

"POV: my rent is up $60 a week, my power bill is up 20 per cent, but the premier made a sandwich on TikTok," the video was captioned, as the premier danced below to the popular 2000s song Closer.

In a statement to the ABC, Mr Miles said the video was a reminder to not believe what you see on social media. 

"It's appalling and disgusting that David Crisafulli has stooped to using AI and deep fake videos to attack me," he said. 

"Mr Crisafulli needs to explain why he thinks this is OK. It's a test of his character.

"In a time when misinformation is everywhere, we as politicians have a duty to communicate with our audiences and to voters clearly and honestly."

The ABC reached out to both Mr Crisafulli and the LNP for comment. 

A spokesperson for the LNP made no apologies for the post. 

"Young Queenslanders have been hit with higher rents and increased power prices under Labor, and this post – which is clearly labelled as being created with AI – is an example of one way we can share that message," they said. 

Generative AI — the technology responsible for most deepfakes — is becoming a growing issue in elections.

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission of Queensland noted state based laws do not cater to, or envisage, the use of AI in election campaign activities.

"The rules around the authorisation of election materials have not changed, and do not change if the material is generated using AI," they said.

It means as long as the content includes the disclaimer of the person who authorised it, it has the tick of approval.

The ECQ also does not regulate material outside of the election period.

Watchdog says there's not much it can do about deepfake content

The Australian Electoral Commission has also raised the alarm about its limited scope to protect voters from deepfake videos and robocalls imitating politicians.

In May, Commissioner Tom Rogers said that if the messages were duly authorised they "do not fall afoul of the electoral act currently".

"It is absolutely happening at an accelerated rate, particularly as our understanding of this technology increases," he told a Senate committee investigating AI technologies.

The AEC can act when misinformation is spread about the electoral process and there are concerns about the lack of legislative tools and capabilities to enable the AEC to detect and respond to AI-generated "information manipulation".

Overseas, South Korea amended its election laws in 2023 to ban election-related deepfake videos, photos and audio in the 90 days before voters head to the polls.

Mr Rogers also raised the prospect of a code of conduct for parties and candidates agreeing to clearly mark generative AI-produced content.

The federal government currently has deepfake laws before the parliament but it is only in the context of non-consensual pornography.

Deepfakes an issue here and abroad

Queensland is no stranger to deepfake videos and elections. During the 2020 campaign, a fake video of then premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was released by Advance Australia in what they branded an Australian first.

The video, which was not quite convincing and was also tagged as a "fake press conference from Pannastacia Alaszczuk". 

But the technology used to create the content has evolved in leaps and bounds in recent years.

In Indonesia, an AI-generated video of deceased former president Suharto appeared on voters' social media feeds, endorsing his former party, and a robocall generated by AI to mimic President Joe Biden's voice was deployed to discourage voters from showing up for the Democratic primaries.

Meanwhile in India, actor-turned politician Muthuvel Karunanidhi endorsed his son, MK Stalin, for chief minister of the state of Tamil Nadu in videos and appearances despite having died in 2018.