Montreal: Dr. François Marquis, chief of intensive care at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, says AI deepfake ads using his face have sold supplements and cancer cures on Facebook since at least August 2025, and that a scam victim who paid hundreds of dollars for pills that never arrived came to the ICU demanding a refund
Dr. François Marquis, chief of intensive care at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital in Montreal, told CBC News (August 2025) and CTV News and CBC News (September 2026) that AI-generated deepfake videos using his likeness keep appearing on Facebook, selling joint supplements, pills and cancer cures and spreading anti-pharmaceutical claims; the latest offers $1 million to dissatisfied customers. He is not on social media and learns of the videos from people who call him. He recounts that a person who paid hundreds of dollars for pills advertised in one of the videos, and never received them, came into the ICU demanding his money back, which he describes as a security problem for the hospital. He has reported the deepfakes to Quebec's College of Physicians, Montreal police and the platforms, but says new videos keep appearing. The makers of the ads are not identified.
AI involvement reported · Causal attribution alleged · 3 sources, 1 underlying account · Added 01/10/2026