Is the viral drone skeleton in Dubai real?

A Halloween-themed drone show alleged to have taken place in Dubai has gone viral after a gigantic building-sized skeleton appeared to stand next to the Burj Khalifa, but people are sceptical about whether it’s real.

The viral TikTok was shared by @geoscan.show and has been viewed over 8.6 million times since it was shared following Halloween.

In the clip, a skeleton figure made up of several lit-up drones appeared to stand next to a Dubai landmark and the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa.

But, a deep dive into the video reveals that all may not be as it seems.

Is the viral drone skeleton clip real or fake?

Firstly, the video appears to show people on the ground looking at the projection, yet the @geoscan.show video is the only one to have appeared on social media.

Given that most of us walk around with a recording device in our pocket, a huge drone event like this would surely have seen many more videos shared on social media from onlookers.

Additionally, those who can be seen in the clip don’t appear to be particularly stunned by what they’re witnessing, despite the skeleton being almost as tall as the building.

Secondly, more clues can also be deduced from the lack of social media engagement. While the Burj Khalifa (owned by Emaar) does host fireworks and light shows, images are almost always shared on the building’s social media pages.

The company Geoscan Drone Show describes itself on Instagram as the “World's #1 drone show provider”, so it has a vested interest in generating viral content.

With tools such as AI, it is becoming easier to create computer-generated clips that look real. It is possible that the viral video of the skeleton in Dubai comes under that bracket.

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