State Department shows an AI-made Africa map with countries misplaced

On July 26, 2026, the State Department presented its new health agreements with African countries at the AIDS 2026 conference in Rio de Janeiro. Halfway through, a map of Africa appeared with the countries in the wrong places. Nigeria sat in the Sahara, Mozambique in the Horn of Africa, and Ivory Coast on the wrong side of the continent. The borders matched no real countries. Attendees posted videos and screenshots online. Reuters found a watermark suggesting the map was made with OpenAI tools. On July 30, the department called it an unfortunate error by a staff member who rushed changes to the slides. It said it took full responsibility for the confusion, including among its African partners.