A YouGov poll from 2019 found 16 per cent of the British public believe the moon landing most likely never happened. 

It remains one of the most famous conspiracy theories in the world, and one aspect that has been caught up in the theory is a prepared speech for President Nixon that was to be given in case the mission ended in catastrophic failure.

AI now plays with this conspiracy in a work titled In Event of Moon Disaster. Artist Halsey Burgund and Francesca Panetta have reconstructed this speech using deepfake technology – otherwise known as AI or Artificial Intelligence. 

Bored of hearing the words “artificial” and “intelligence” yet? Well, I am afraid you have no choice - AI is here to stay.

Whether you love it or hate it, you will just have to lump it as AI is looking like it is the future - and it’s like they say, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.

The artists said: “We aim to show where this technology is heading – and what some of the key consequences might be.”

It is thought that whilst AI will have an impact in most areas of our lives, it is unlikely to happen all at once. Humans must work alongside machines on this in an interdisciplinary movement.

We have seen this kind of massive shift before, and it was met with the same fear, caution and uncertainty. In 2000, the Daily Mail put out a headline saying the “Internet ‘may be just a passing fad as millions give up on it’”.

And now look at us - we have become a sucker to this network which is now intensely crucial to our everyday lives, and, whilst it has its ugly parts, makes life a lot easier and vastly more successful.

But how do we know what is real and what is fake in this new world? As we step into the unknown, we must err on the side of caution and tune in to what is true or false.

Art is emerging which shows the possibilities and extent of increasingly “clever” machine learning and AI and how deceptive it has the capability to be.

Whilst many critics debate the authenticity and its effect on creativity when art is made by AI, there is no debate when it comes to its ability to alarm the viewer.

Over time, this technology will become less alarming and more “normal” (dare I say, the “new normal”?), as long as we work alongside machines. The human mind is like none other, and our compassion and emotion will rule over.

Using AI to tell an alternative history, In Event of Moon Disaster, which is now showing at the Sainsbury Centre, brings to light how doubt could be cast on even the most well-known of facts, such as the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing.

The piece asks us all to consider how new technologies can “bend, redirect and obfuscate the truth around us”, exploring “the influence and pervasiveness of misinformation and deepfake technologies in our contemporary society”.

The voice of Nixon was created using a synthetic voice whilst dialogue replacement techniques were used to imitate the movement of Nixon’s mouth and lips.

Played back on a vintage television (which featured in The Crown and Indiana Jones, might I add) within a British 1960s living room - fit with a Dalek and Lava Lamp – anyone can come and be transported back to 1969 to witness an alternative history.

You are shaken that if an event as influential as the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing could be manipulated, you start thinking about what else could be.

In Event of Moon Disaster is showing at the Sainsbury Centre in Norwich until August 4.