TimeBinder

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Free quiz: takes about 2 minutes

Real or AI?Can you spot the AI product photo?

TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes. Six side-by-side object photos. One of each pair is AI.

Your score is worked out in your browser. Real photos are public-domain or CC0. The AI images were made for this quiz and show no real person.

Pick the AI photo in each pair

Tap the photo you think is AI-generated. You will see the answer and a tip straight away.

Takes about 2 minutes. Your score is worked out in your browser and is not tied to your name.

Six rounds. Two product photos each. One is AI.

Each round shows two photographs of the same kind of object, the sort you might see on a marketplace listing. One is a real photograph. The other was generated by AI. Pick the one you think is AI, then see what gave it away.

  • Real photos are public-domain or CC0 pictures from Wikimedia Commons.
  • The AI images were made for this quiz. No real person appears in any of them.
  • Sides are shuffled every time you play.

Can you tell AI product photos by looking? The short answer

Often not, and the rules around listing images are still catching up. Amazon’s 2026 seller guidance requires the metadata tag “contains-synthetic-performer” on listing images and A+ content that include photorealistic AI-generated people. Autocomplete on 12 November 2026 still offered “ai product photos”, “ai product photos reddit” and “amazon ai generated product images”. On X that day, individual posts were modest: @emilyuel on 7 November had 5 likes and 367 impressions when we read the API; a 17 October post asked Etsy to require real product photos. A 3 June 2026 TechCrunch report that Amazon would show AI product images in search is earlier context, dated honestly.

Spotting by eye is unreliable. TimeBinder is not a tool for identifying generated media. A TimeBind shows only that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and that a copy you hold still matches it. This quiz is a practice test with images we have the rights to use. It is not a marketplace tool, and it does not review anyone else’s listing.

Five clues in product photos, and why none is proof

These are the habits that showed up in the quiz. They are worth knowing, but each one fails often enough that you should never settle a listing dispute on them alone.

  1. Catalogue isolation. An object perfectly centred on a clean table or a plain wall, with a textbook shadow. Real studio shots are often isolated too.
  2. Missing or invented marks. A logo that vanishes, a brand that should be there, or a generic “antique” face that does not quite read. Newer tools are improving fast.
  3. Too-even wear, or none at all. Identical water droplets, a mirror-finish kettle, a bag with no scuffs. Real product retouching can look the same.
  4. A “hero” angle. A backpack or a pair of sneakers posed as if for a campaign, slightly more dramatic than a snapshot. Brands style real products that way on purpose.
  5. A table with no mess. No other objects at the edge of the frame, no mixed patina, no awkward crop. Generated listing photos often reset the set.

All five get weaker once an image is cropped, filtered, compressed and re-shared, which is how most people see marketplace photos. If a photograph of a product matters later, the stronger record is the original file and when it existed, not a guess from the way it looks. Platforms may also have their own disclosure rules for AI imagery; those rules are about labels, not about whether you can tell by looking.

If a product photo matters, keep a record of the original

When a buyer, a platform or a competitor questions a listing photo, an argument about how it looks goes nowhere. A better question is whether you can show the exact original and when it existed.

  1. Keep the original file untouched. Do not edit or re-save it. Work on copies. If you also use a generated image, keep the real photograph of the actual product as well.
  2. Make a TimeBind when you take or finish it. Your browser makes the SHA-256 fingerprint, and the file stays on your device. TimeBinder records the fingerprint with a time on the Bitcoin blockchain.
  3. Keep the file and the Proof of Time Certificate together.
  4. Check later with the file comparison checker. A copy that still matches is the same file. One that does not match is a different file.
Make a TimeBind: first one free →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. An ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

What a TimeBind shows, and what it does not. It shows that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and that a copy shown later still matches its fingerprint. It does not show who made the file, who owns it, that its contents are true, or whether AI was used to make or edit it. This is general information, not legal advice.

Image credits and licences

Every real photo is public domain or CC0, which permits modification and reuse. Each AI image was generated by TimeBinder for this quiz from a text description of the same kind of object, not as a copy of the real photograph. Photos were cropped to a 4:3 frame. No real person is shown.

The real photographs used in the Real or AI? product-photos quiz
SubjectReal photo sourceLicencePhotographer / uploader
Over-ear headphones on a deskWikimedia CommonsCC0Corey Blaz
A pair of running sneakersWikimedia CommonsCC0Linda Xu
A simple lamp against a wallWikimedia CommonsCC0David van Dijk
A pocket watch on folded clothWikimedia CommonsCC0Nic Chiro
A backpack on rocksWikimedia CommonsCC0Mayra Carreno
A copper pour-over kettleWikimedia CommonsCC0Athena Lam

If the picture is of a building rather than a product, the free Real or AI? architecture quiz is six rounds of real and generated exteriors. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If the picture is of a parked car rather than a product, the free Real or AI? cars quiz is six rounds of real and generated car photographs. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If you would rather try signs and lettering, the free Real sign photo or AI? quiz is six rounds of real and generated photographs. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If you would rather try instrument photographs, the free Musical instruments: real or AI? quiz is three rounds of pianos and violins. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If you would rather try food, the free Real cake or AI? quiz is four rounds of cake and dessert photographs. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If you would rather try minerals, the free Real crystal or AI? quiz is six rounds of amethyst, pyrite, bismuth and other crystal photographs. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

If you would rather try handmade objects, the free Blown glass and glass ornaments: real or AI? quiz is six rounds of real photographs against AI images. It cannot tell you whether a file you hold is AI-made.

Real or AI? product-photos quiz: FAQ

How does the Real or AI? product-photos quiz work?

You get six rounds. Each shows two photographs of the same kind of object, such as headphones, sneakers or a kettle, the sort you might see on a marketplace listing. One is a real photograph and one was generated by AI. Tap the one you think is AI, see which was which, read what gave it away, and get a score you can share.

Where do the real photos come from?

They are public-domain or CC0 photographs from Wikimedia Commons, listed with the photographer and licence in the image credits table on this page. The AI images were generated by TimeBinder for this quiz from text descriptions of the same kinds of objects. No real person appears in any image.

Why product photos, and why now?

Amazon’s 2026 seller guidance requires a disclosure tag, “contains-synthetic-performer”, on listing images and A+ content that include photorealistic AI-generated people. Autocomplete on 12 November 2026 still offered phrases such as “ai product photos”, “ai product photos reddit” and “amazon ai generated product images”. Individual posts on X about AI listing photos that day had modest counts, which we disclose with the links on this page. A 3 June 2026 TechCrunch report that Amazon would show AI product images in search is earlier context, dated honestly. This quiz is a visual practice test. It is not a marketplace tool, and it is separate from our listing-photo checklist.

Can people tell AI product photos by looking?

Often not. A clean object on a wooden table can be a real catalogue photograph, and a slightly messy still-life can be generated. Clues such as missing logos, even droplets or an unused “hero” angle help on a still image, but they are hints, not proof, and they fade once a photo is cropped, filtered or re-shared.

Does TimeBinder tell me whether a listing photo is AI-made?

No. TimeBinder is not a tool for identifying generated media, and it cannot tell you whether AI made a file. A TimeBind shows that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and that a copy you hold still matches it. That is useful when you can say “here is this file, recorded by this time,” not when you need to know how the picture was made.

Do you store my score or answers?

Your score is worked out in your browser. This page sends a few anonymous events to our analytics, such as the quiz being finished with a score band, never your name or email.

How can I show a product photo is the file I kept?

Keep the original file unedited, and make a TimeBind of it when you take or finish it. Later, a copy that still matches the fingerprint is the same file, and the record shows it existed no later than the recorded time. It does not show who took the photo or that the object in the listing is the one that will be shipped. Read how to prove a photo is not AI for the honest limits.

Related guides and tools

Date the original product photo before it gets copied

Add a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes: a dated, checkable record of the exact file you hold.

  1. Open the app and sign in with email or Google.
  2. Add your files. They stay on your computer.
  3. Seal them and download your Proof of Time certificates.
Open TimeBinder →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. See pricing.