AI-thenticity: Exploring the effect of perceived authenticity of AI-generated visual content on tourist patronage intentions

Artificial intelligence (AI) can generate high-quality destination images to attract prospective visitors. The perceived authenticity of these images can determine the extent to which tourists will patronize a destination. This study proposes the concept of AI-thenticity defined indexically as the originality of artificial intelligence-generated content and iconically as how accurately and faithfully artificial intelligence-generated content reproduces the original. Experimental research design is employed to explore the relationships between AI- versus human-made (labelled and non-labelled) destination photos, perceived authenticity, trust, congruence, and patronage intentions. The results show that perceived authenticity of AI-generated images positively influences trust, and patronage intentions. Notably, congruence between AI-generated images and tourists mediates the relationship between AI-thenticity and patronage intentions. Although perceived authenticity is more pronounced for human-generated images, perceived authenticity of AI-generated content is significant, especially if it is non-labelled. Theoretically, the study demonstrates how AI-thenticity can aid in understanding the concept of authenticity in a rapidly digitizing world. Practically, the study shows the potential of AI for destination management and marketing.