20 years of Hommingberg cheetah trout – the best AI pictures for the anniversary

20 years ago, c't launched one of the most curious SEO competitions in the history of the internet. The task: Who would rank the completely fictitious term Hommingberger Gepardenforelle best on Google? The imaginary fish went viral and became a digital legend in c't history.

To mark the anniversary, we wanted to know: What does the cheetah trout really look like? Not photographed – because that is notoriously difficult with an animal that doesn't even exist – but as an AI-generated image. Together with c't Fotografie, we have therefore launched a big anniversary competition. The task: to take a picture of the Hommingberg cheetah trout – in a creative, technically sophisticated, humorous or amazingly realistic way.

Numerous pictures were submitted to the c't photo gallery under the title “Cheetah trout”. Editors from c't and c't Fotografie have now selected the best works from all the entries. Finally, it was a close call and there was a draw, so we can now choose two winning photos. Here are the ten best AI images of the Hommingberg cheetah trout and why they impressed us:

10th place: cts animal life special — Hommingberg cheetah trout spotted by photographer TSL

We didn't even know that we also have an animal magazine in our publishing house. The Hommingberg cheetah trout made it onto the cover of one of our special editions and is being celebrated as a sensational find. However, we were not only impressed by the article because of the accolade, but also because the fabulous creature made of cheetah and trout is presented here in such a tongue-in-cheek and successful way.

–

9th place: Hommingberger Müllerin from miadolog

Another entry with a lot of imagination. The culinary staging of the Hommingberg cheetah trout, served with parsley potatoes, lemon slices, a sausage (the AI seems to have spun something here) and a bottle of white wine. Overall, the picture humorously conveys a mixture of classic fish cuisine and a surreal fantasy world surrounding our beloved mythical creature.

–

8th place: Cheetah trout at “National Geographic” by dj3hut1

Whether it's a cover picture or a still from a documentary – this AI work stages the cheetah trout as a 'newly discovered species', as seen in the renowned “National Geographic”. Although the cheetah trout is oversized and the font is not entirely clean, it is a nice reference to the famous science magazine.

–

7th place: Cheetah trout in the style of Sebastião Salgado by dermaeus

Rich in contrast, dramatic, almost sacred: this black-and-white image very skillfully quotes the world-famous Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado and his photographic style – Black-and-white photographs with strong contrasts and lots of drama. The staging underwater and in monochrome lends the cheetah trout an almost philosophical dignity.

–

6th place: Cheetah trout as a social media trend by Roy Batty

Whether as a viral meme, on TikTok or even on LinkedIn: this depiction as a packaged action figure can currently be seen everywhere and shows the cheetah trout in the digital zeitgeist. The AI combines design, typography, and web aesthetics to create a contribution that proves that even mythical creatures have influencer potential and also read c't.

–

5th place: A cheetah trout on the hunt by malacoda

This picture takes the theme one step further in a funny way. It shows the cheetah trout dynamically and in great detail on the hunt for five gazelles, which, like our mythical creature, are also half animal, half fish. What are the hunted animals actually called? The composition is reminiscent of animal photographs from Africa, but also a little of “Finding Nemo”. A successful play with different visual worlds and a moving scene.

–

4th place: Colored copperplate engraving of Maria Sibylla Merian (1705) by Manfred Polak

A stylish imitation: this “historical illustration” bows to 18th century natural history. If you don't look closely, you might actually think it is a genuine work from the age of copperplate engravings. It's a fine example of AI as a time travel machine, and the cheetah trout here not only looks quite real, but also quite cheerful.

–

3rd place: Lego trout by Rolf Schatten

Colorful, playful and with a good dose of nostalgia: this cheetah trout made of Lego bricks would have earned a place on the shelf in any child's room. The KI realization impressed with its clever idea and charming concept as well as its clear design language.

–

1st place: Cheetah trout - old photo of The Gray Sheep

This picture obviously plays with the aesthetics of historical animal photography. The slightly faded colors, paper texture and muted look perfectly mimic a 19th century shot. A rather inconspicuous AI contribution of the cheetah trout, but one that skillfully combines technique and visual effect. An AI image that, in the jury's opinion, is completely coherent and convincing. It was created with ChatGPT and a 1000-word prompt, which in turn was also written with ChatGPT.

–

1st place: The discovery of the Hommingberger Cheetah Trout by Tom Schouw

Tom Schouw's scene looks like a snapshot from a BBC nature documentary following a group of crazy anglers. It seems to be the exact moment when the camera team gets its first glimpse of the mystical animal. The cheetah trout is staged very well and realistically. With this extremely successful composition, we are also happy to forgive the small lapse on the cap, as it says “Homningberg”. As a jury, however, we agreed that this AI picture hits the sweet spot between artistic staging and photography. The finished image was preceded by a multi-stage workflow in which ChatGPT-4.5, Photoshop with its generative fill tools, Stable Diffusion for cropping the face and Magnific AI for upscaling were among the tools used.

–

A conclusion on AI creativity

The AI image competition has shown that AI is no longer just a gimmick. It is becoming a tool for creative storytelling, a medium for new visual languages. At the same time, it raises exciting questions: What actually is a “photo”? How is image authorship changing? And how much truth is there in the artificial image?

The Hommingberg cheetah trout was a joke 20 years ago – Today it is a symbol of digital creativity. Many thanks to all participants for their ideas, their wit and their pictorial fantasies.

Here is an overview of the top 10 of the AI picture competition:

Bild 1 von 10

KI-Bild-Wettbewerb Hommingberger Gepardenforelle (10 Bilder)

(vat)