If you’ve been scrolling through social media lately, chances are you’ve seen people turning themselves into Studio Ghibli characters using AI.
And now, even Malaysia’s top leaders are hopping on the trend.
Last night (Mar 27), Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shared an AI-generated portrait of himself on Facebook, styled after the warm, nostalgic tones of famous Ghibli films like My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away.
Not long after, Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi posted a similar Ghibli-style version of himself, cheekily captioned, “Joining the trend too. But I think I look a bit younger.”
Both portraits follow the signature Ghibli look — soft hues, expressive eyes, and an overall wholesome, friendly vibe. Netizens couldn’t help but gush over how approachable and youthful the two looked.
The trend started gaining momentum after OpenAI released its latest multimodal model, GPT-4o, which includes powerful image generation features.
Users simply upload a photo and give a prompt like “Ghibli style,” and boom — instant anime aesthetic.
Even OpenAI CEO Sam Altman jumped in by updating his X (formerly Twitter) profile photo with a Ghibli-inspired version of himself.
As the AI-generated Ghibli wave continues to sweep the internet, an old interview with Studio Ghibli’s legendary co-founder Hayao Miyazaki also resurfaced.
Back in 2016, Miyazaki expressed strong disapproval of AI-generated art, saying creators who use AI “lack understanding of human pain.”
