The link leads to a login for Goose, a dating and friendship app for gay men with the slogan “For Boys”, which allows users to “meet people while you’re already in life,” according to its website.
The problem is that @miles.sumrall doesn’t appear to be genuine. Nor does @danielmmulugeta, the beautiful dark-haired influencer, who shared the above caption with the exact same verbiage, His Stories of close friends. Both accounts were created in May 2026 and have fewer than 10 posts as well as a high follower-to-follower ratio. And according to AI image detector software, both of their Instagram avatars were determined to be AI-generated with more than 90 percent confidence. A SynthID investigation on Google Gemini, which can help identify AI-generated images, also found that “most or all” of Miles and Daniel’s profile photos were created using Google AI.
Created by model-influencer Derek Chadwick, as well as former BeReal development and community manager David Aligas, Goose positions itself as a Grindr alternative for gay men who want to build lasting relationships. At the time it was announced, many scoffed at the idea that the app would be used for anything other than finding casual hookups. One X user joked, “Goose is basically Pokemon Ho.”
Still, user interest was apparently so high that when the app launched last Thursday, it reached #4 in the App Store’s free lifestyle downloads category, and is now ranked 33rd in lifestyle app downloads globally. And promotional content from creators like @miles.sumrall has likely played a role in getting so many people to download the app.
Miles and Daniel appeared in screengrabs shared on X by user @pspthe2nd, whose post alleged “use” of the app.[s] AI model to promote fake interest #goose. But both accounts appear to be part of a much larger network of attractive, seemingly AI-generated male influencers who are promoting the app, either reaching out to gay men via DM or adding them to their close friends’ stories.
Ryan Cheam, an account executive in marketing and public relations, says he first noticed a strange new Instagram account from someone named @alistaircrombie about a week ago. His bio reads that he works in PR at a famous art gallery, so, Chim told WIRED, “I thought he was just a normal gay guy.” However, when Alistair invites her to join a “curated network of people” at Goose by sending her an invite code, she becomes suspicious. The SynthID investigation found that “most or all” of Alistair’s profile photo was generated using Google AI.
In addition to Miles, Alistair, and Daniel, WIRED was able to identify more than two dozen similar accounts, all of which were created in May or June 2026 and displayed only a few posts — a hallmark of inauthentic accounts. Many accounts also frequently comment on each other’s photos, including similar heart and fire emojis.
Often, accounts would follow potential members and add them to their close friends stories, but sometimes they would directly DM them to encourage them to sign up, as was the case with Dalton Bauer, who works in marketing and received a DM from a user named @lucalepkowski. “Hey! Okay this may seem random but thought you’d be interested :),” the message begins before inviting Bauer to the Goose community, using similar language to the Chime received from Alistair.
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