While US toy giant Mattel has not released an “Albanese Barbie” despite online claims and viral videos suggesting otherwise.
The so-called “Albanese Barbie” is an AI-generated parody circulated by Australian political satire page The Snark Tank. Promoted with the slogan “pull my strings for empty promises”, the video caricatures Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and lampoons government positions on issues including Palestine and Israel, border security, national unity, housing affordability and hate speech.
The fictional doll is described as “looking strong in the box and collapsing on contact with reality”, complete with a mock “blame the previous government” button.
The satire has surfaced amid heightened political and regulatory scrutiny of artificial intelligence platforms. Earlier this year, Albanese criticised Elon Musk’s social media platform X, accusing it of failing to uphold community standards and allowing its AI chatbot, Grok, to enable the creation of abhorrent sexual images without the consent of those depicted.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley backed the Prime Minister’s concerns, pledging bipartisan support for tougher action against AI systems that generate non-consensual images.
Following the criticism, X restricted Grok’s image generation and editing functions, limiting them largely to paying subscribers. Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, later announced an investigation into a surge in sexually explicit AI-generated material involving both adults and children, warning that technology companies have the capacity — and responsibility — to prevent misuse of their products.
Concerns about AI manipulation have also been sharpened by earlier incidents involving the Prime Minister’s likeness. In 2025, a deepfake version of Albanese appeared in scam advertisements targeting Australians on YouTube, portraying him with an American accent and promising users earnings of up to $35 an hour through an alleged AI-driven cryptocurrency trading scheme.
The ads redirected viewers to a website posing as Canadian broadcaster CTV and urged them to invest $400 in a platform called AUFIRST to receive supposed monthly “dividends”. Similar fake investment promotions using manipulated audio and video of Albanese have previously circulated on Facebook.
Alongside the Albanese parody, The Snark Tank has released other AI-generated satirical content, including a fictional “Penny Wong Barbie”, marketed as coming “Now With Extra Moral Superiority!”.
Support our Journalism
No-nonsense journalism. No paywalls. Whether you’re in Australia, the UK, Canada, the USA, or India, you can support The Australia Today by taking a paid subscription via Patreon or donating via PayPal — and help keep honest, fearless journalism alive.
