Diddy Hugged Up in Prison, New Pics and Video Not the Real Deal

Diddy can't stop hugging his fellow inmates and posing for pics with them ... at least that's how some new photos and videos make it seem, except those images are really just A.I. running amok!

There's a selfie floating around social media -- one inmate in the foreground as he snaps a pic of Diddy grinning and hugging another inmate ... and the pic even has a TMZ watermark on it. Looks legit, but we're here to bust your bubble.

While TMZ has obtained several real images of Diddy at Fort Dix federal prison ... this ain't one of 'em -- nor are the other crystal clear selfies you might have seen on social platforms. It's simply someone's clever use of A.I., and it's becoming more and more prevalent.

There's even an A.I. video purporting to show Diddy in his prison sweatsuit hanging with 2 other inmates in the yard.

Here's a pro tip you can use -- if you see these sorts of pics or videos on socials, especially those with TMZ watermarks, just go to tmz.com and see if it's on our site. If it's not, you know it ain't real.

Also, it wouldn't make a lot of sense for inmates to snap selfies ... that would make it very easy for the warden to figure out who's doing Diddy photo shoots.

Basically, now that the world's seen Diddy rocking his gray beard -- courtesy of our real videos and photos -- they're pumping those images into A.I., creating all sorts of images and posting 'em everywhere.

In other words, prison Diddy's about to give Mr. Rogers, Tupac, and MLK Jr. a run for their A.I. money.