An Australian influencer has come under fire after posting videos providing aid to poverty-stricken children, which has been deemed as AI-generated.
Lily Jay, whose real name is Lily Jay Hinson, has heavily documented her conversion to Islam, posting videos and images of her journey to her nearly three million Instagram followers.
She has built a cult following online where she posts her bleach-blonde hair wrapped in a hijab as she delivers food to children in developing nations.
The 31-year-old, who grew up in the Sunshine Coast, previously dabbled in the performance arts before taking a major pivot into Islamic ‘influencing’.
Ms Hinson worked as a globetrotting burlesque dancer, performing in Moulin Rouge in Paris and Palazzo Manheim in Germany.
Following that, she took a swing at a music career, releasing her debut single and music video titled: ‘Renovate’.
Between 2024 and 2025, the influencer’s content did a backflip – from Mercedes steering wheels and Dior perfumes, to prayer and daily Quaran readings.
In one clip, Ms Hinson can be seen wearing a black hijab as she raises her palms to the sky while thanking “God for allowing this moment to happen”.
“You can’t stop the truth. Islam is spreading, the world is waking up, one Shahada at a time”, she wrote.
This video is just one of many that has earned the Australian a loyal following among Muslims across the world.
Doubt cast on influencer’s foundation
Ms Hinson’s aid organisation ‘the Lily Jay Foundation’, has also built a large following on social media, where clips purport to show aid recipients in Gaza, Uganda, Nepal and Sudan.
In one video, followers were introduced to the foundation’s “newest children in Africa”, where Ugandan children were seen being presented with Lily Jay Foundation T-shirts.
“We washed them, gave them new clothes, everything a child needs to grow up in a positive environment,” the clip said.
However, an ABC News Verify Invesigation has brought the foundation’s philanthropy under the spotlight, after it discovered a concerning number of AI-generated posts by the foundation.
In one clip the beaming blonde is seen standing among a group of African children who excitedly wave their hands at the camera.
“Alhamdullilah! The orphanage is now open!” she says.
According to the ABC, the woman in the video is not Lily Jay, but a fabrication made with AI.
The children in the background are also fake, as well as the large ‘Lily Jay Foundation’ banner that sits on the wall behind them.
It’s a similar scene in clips claiming to be filmed inside Gaza, where aid workers don the foundation logo and film children fighting over food.
In one clip, Ms Hinson appears to stand in front of a truck that she says is on its way to deliver aid.
On the truck is a large banner featuring the foundation logo and a Palestine flag, which flickers over her arm as she points to it.
Miracles, prophets and artificial intelligence
The foundation has claimed it’s built a mosque, distributed aid and provided education in numerous countries.
The foundation’s website – which has been updated and cleaned hourly following ABC’s investigation – encouraged viewers to donate to the causes, offering options of $96, $192 and $384.
The website has since taken its donation page down.
In Uganda – where Ms Hinson claims some of these videos were filmed – it is illegal to operate an orphanage without registering it with the government.
The Ugandan Registration Services Bureau initially confirmed to ABC NEWS Verify that there was no orphanage registered under the Lily Jay Foundation name, or “Ada Nur”, the name Ms Hinson has given to the orphanage on her website.
In May this year, a press release was published announcing that Ms Hinson had won a humanitarian award.
“Lily Jay Honoured with 2026 Austral-Global Excellence Award for Humanitarian Leadership,” the image read.
The press release included a message from Ms Hinson who said the recognition marked a “significant step forward for independent advocacy.”
“I am honoured by this recognition, but the focus remains on the resilience of the families in Gaza,” she said.
“Our mission is to prove that individual action can create a lifeline for those overlooked by global systems. We are committed to expanding our distribution networks to reach even more vulnerable communities in the coming months.”
However, ABC’s analysis confirmed that both images carried ChatGPT’s SynthID watermark – a clear indication that the images were generated by its tools.
The press release reportedly came from a personal relations company called ‘Real Media Group,’ who posted the announcement on its website while referring to Ms Hinson as its “client”.
But also on Real Media Group’s website is a page displaying photos of its team, with Ms Hinson pictured and tagged as the group’s “co-founder”.
There appears to be no existence of the humanitarian award outside of the foundation or Real Media Group.
Not a charity, but a ‘foundation’
According to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, the Charity Register shows no entity registered under the name of the Lily Jay Foundation.
A spokesperson for the ACNC told news.com.au that most charities do the right thing, but the public should do practice due diligence before donating.
“While the ACNC does not regulate fundraising, a key part of our role is to promote trust and confidence in the charity sector, and we do have fundraising guidance for charities and for the public.
“For the public, we advise they confirm an organisation’s credentials by checking the ACNC Charity Register before donating.
“The public can be assured that their generosity and trust in Australian charities is well placed. Most charities do the right thing, are transparent and accountable.
“On occasion when we find a charity has made an error in their reporting, for example, almost all charities work with us to remedy the issue.”
The Lily Jay Foundation registered its first ABN in 2025, but at the bottom of the foundation’s website is the admission that it is not an actual charity.
“Lily Jay Foundation is a next-generation social enterprise and high-speed humanitarian logistics firm executing rapid aid deployment in global crisis zones,” it reads.
“To maintain absolute speed and independence, we operate as a private commercial structure funded by voluntary project sponsorships, which fuel our high-speed supply chain and are currently not tax-deductible.”
News.com.au has reached out to the Lily Jay Foundation for comment.