“Done. Done. Fooled.” – The leaked invitation to the iPhone 16 launch event was a fake

The iPhone 16 launch event is almost here and the internet is waiting eagerly for Apple to reveal some official details. Yesterday, the hype reached a new high when an allegedly leaked invitation to Apple's September event made the rounds online. Naturally, the tech world went into an uproar. But as it turns out, the invitation was a complete hoax.

The invite was originally shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Majin Bu, a leaker who has recently been in the spotlight for various Apple-related leaks. The image of the invite looked pretty convincing, showing an Apple logo in a bronze tone that matches the alleged new color scheme of the iPhone 16 Pro models. The tagline “Ready. Set. Capture.” made everyone think it was a clever nod to the alleged Capture button that could appear on all iPhones this year.

However, another X/Twitter user, @lorevfx, revealed today that he created the “leaked” invitation in under ten minutes using Figma and an AI-generated texture. He admitted to sending it to Majin Bu out of boredom and shared a time-lapse video showing the creation of the image. He also shared the entire chat, which convinced Majin Bu that the leak was the real thing.

Thankfully, this was all in good fun, but it's a good reminder that not everything we see online is what it seems – especially when it comes to leaks. While some leaks may be genuine, the ease with which sophisticated fakes can be created makes it increasingly difficult to distinguish fact from fiction. Not to mention that such incidents can have serious consequences when they involve financial fraud or phishing attempts.

While we wait for more reliable details about Apple's upcoming event, the most credible information we have so far is that the event could take place on September 10, based on educated guesses from industry insiders. In addition to the iPhone 16 series, there is also talk that Apple will launch some new AirPods models this year. But as always, with leaks, it's wise to take them with a pinch of salt – or perhaps a whole shaker full.