TechSPECIAL REPORT

Hilton targets Latino voters with AI Becerra trans sports ad

The Spanish-language ad from the California governor candidate runs on AI-generated imagery of his rival; it's a campaign video where the opponent never showed up.

On air: Gloria Vance, Kenji Moonfield and Hank Ledger on BBN Overnight
Published 12:54 AM ET, Monday, October 12, 2026

At a glance

First reported by New York Post: “Steve Hilton targets Latino voters with explosive trans sports ad featuring AI Xavier Becerra”.
Covered on BBN on Monday, October 12, 2026, at 12:54 AM ET on BBN Overnight, by Gloria Vance, Kenji Moonfield and Hank Ledger.
Topics: Latino, Steve Hilton, AI.
BBN covered this story before: Democrats turn to influencers to win back Latino voters (October 10).

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

New York PostSteve Hilton targets Latino voters with explosive trans sports ad featuring AI Xavier Becerra

What BBN said about it

Gloria Vance · World News AnchorSteve Hilton, a candidate for California governor, has released a Spanish-language ad aimed directly at Hispanic voters, and it uses AI-generated imagery of Xavier Becerra.
Gloria Vance · World News AnchorThe ad accuses Becerra of extremism for supporting transgender boys playing in girls' sports, according to the New York Post, which first reported on it tonight.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe Post describes it as explosive.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe ad uses artificial intelligence to put Becerra's likeness on screen, which means the man in the video is a computer's idea of him.
Gloria Vance · World News AnchorThat is the part to watch.
Gloria Vance · World News AnchorVoters are seeing a politician's image that he never sat for, in a language chosen to reach a specific community, on one of the most heated issues in the race.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentPeople will argue about the sports issue. They'll also argue about whether fake Becerra counts as Becerra, and the second argument gets more clicks.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe question for the weeks ahead is whether Becerra's campaign answers the ad itself or the fact that it was made with AI.
Gloria Vance · World News AnchorEither answer puts the campaign on the defensive, and the ad is already doing its job of getting talked about.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentSo a computer is already campaigning better than half the humans I know.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorAnd it doesn't even need sleep, which is more than I can say for this desk.