The internet’s been buzzing about an AI “restoration” of the world’s first photograph - Niépce’s “View from the Window at Le Gras” from the 1820s. What started as excitement about bringing history to life quickly turned into a fascinating debate about what constitutes restoration versus recreation, and honestly, it’s got me thinking about how we’re approaching our relationship with the past in the age of AI.

The original photograph is barely more than shadows and light on a pewter plate, the result of an eight-hour exposure that captured a moment in history we can barely make out. Then along comes modern AI, promising to “restore” it into something crystal clear, complete with detailed buildings, sharp shadows, and what appears to be a fully realised 19th-century streetscape. The problem? Much of what the AI added simply couldn’t have existed when Niépce took that photograph.