ABC NEWS Verify has reported that Australian influencer Lily Jay and the Lily Jay Foundation published misleading charity content that included AI-generated material, raising questions about projects the foundation said it was running in Uganda, Gaza, Nepal and Sudan.
The report says Lily Jay built a following of nearly 3 million on social media after publicly documenting her conversion to Islam. She later launched the Lily Jay Foundation, which said it had been carrying out charitable work since September last year, including mosque construction, food distribution and education-related efforts, while also soliciting donations from the public.
Uganda orphanage video flagged as AI-generated
ABC NEWS Verify said a video tied to an orphanage in Uganda featured an AI-generated woman celebrating the opening of the facility, AI-generated children holding lollipops, and an AI-generated foundation banner in the background.
One of the details highlighted in the report was a supposed staff member’s T-shirt, where an extra letter “L” appeared on the back. ABC cited that as a typical image-generation error.
The broadcaster also examined local registration records. It said operating an orphanage in Uganda without registration is illegal. According to the report, the relevant local registry initially told ABC that it could not find any orphanage registered under either the foundation’s name or the name “Ada Nur,” which appeared on the website. Days after ABC sent questions, a registration for “Lilly Foundation Limited” appeared, but its status was listed as “non-compliant.”
Award claim and PR links drew scrutiny
ABC also reviewed a press release published in May that said Lily Jay had received the “2026 Austral-Global Humanitarian Excellence Award.” Two photos attached to that release, according to the report, carried ChatGPT SynthID invisible watermarking, indicating AI-generated imagery.
The public relations firm that distributed the release, Real Media Group, described Lily Jay as a client while also listing her as a co-founder on its team page, ABC said.
Gaza bakery project could not be verified
On the foundation’s claimed bakery in Gaza, which it said was supplying humanitarian aid, ABC reported that it could neither locate the site nor find independent evidence that it existed. Humanitarian organizations that have worked in Gaza for years also said they had not heard of it, according to the report.
Website reportedly said the foundation was not a charity
ABC said the foundation’s website contained a statement, placed in a less visible section, saying it was not a charity.
The report identified Lily Jay as Lily Jay Hinson, 31, from Australia. It said she had worked in music and dance before repositioning herself as an Islamic influencer. Her personal social media accounts showed business-class travel, luxury cars and expensive jewelry.
ABC also said her personal account was operated from Cyprus, while the foundation’s account was listed in Kosovo. After checking company records, the broadcaster reported that Lily Jay was not a director of the foundation. Instead, three other people were listed as directors, and one of them had links to Real Media Group. ABC said that when it called that director, he acknowledged the role and then ended the call. The company’s website later went offline.
Site content changed after questions were sent
According to ABC, after it sent inquiries, visitors from Australia were redirected to a local version of the site where the donation button and the “not a charity” disclaimer no longer appeared. From outside Australia, however, the donation path remained active. The orphanage video and the award-related page were also removed, the report said.
Former charity executive warned about unregistered fundraising
Tim Costello, former CEO of World Vision Australia, told ABC that photos of children in orphanages are among the strongest emotional triggers for donors. He also said unregistered charity structures are risky because properly registered charities are legally required to disclose income and spending, allowing the public to see where donations go.
ABC presented the case as a warning about the use of AI and deepfake-style techniques in fundraising. When real settings, fabricated inserts and synthetic visuals are packaged together in one stream of content, verification becomes harder for both platforms and audiences.
ABC quoted Costello as saying that when people donate voluntarily, they are expressing love, and that trust should not be betrayed.
The underlying verification report referenced in the source material was published by ABC on July 5, 2026, under the headline about AI-generated misleading videos linked to the Lily Jay Foundation.