MUSK DERANGEMENT SYNDROME: NBC10 Boston’s Pete Bouchard under fire for saying SpaceX splashdown had ‘strong hints of AI.’

Bouchard, after the NASA astronauts who were stuck in space for 9 months finally returned to Earth, said the SpaceX splashdown had “strong hints of AI enhancement.”

The chief meteorologist at NBC10 quickly faced criticism from online followers, and he deleted his post that questioned the dolphins suddenly surfacing.

Then he put out a new Facebook post Tuesday night about the splashdown involving Elon Musk’s company.

“I’m no conspiracy theorist, but that splashdown today had strong hints of AI enhancement in the drone footage,” Bouchard posted. “Lighting looked cinematic. Was it the camera?”

“This doesn’t take anything away from the brave astronauts or remarkable scientists involved in returning a capsule from space,” he added. “It’s a remarkable feat and a heroic moment for our country.”

Bouchard later updated his post for clarification.

“My original post was simply commenting on how visually appealing and perfect the landing looked using the drone,” he wrote. “I was curious about the technology and the camera the crew used to capture the scene.”

His Bluesky post still included a mention about the dolphins.

“I know I won’t feed the conspiracy theorists on this platform, but that splashdown today had strong hints of AI enhancement,” he posted on Bluesky. “And the pod of dolphins that just happened to surface?”

“Totally realistic at reentry, then when they cut to the drone footage at sea level when the parachutes deployed, the lighting looked off,” he added. “Maybe the camera settings?”

Bouchard, who has more than 11,000 followers on Facebook, was slammed online for his post.

” ‘I’m no conspiracy theorist’ but I have a conspiracy theory,” someone posted. “You can’t make this up.”

No matter how big their market, all local reporters dream of playing in the national leagues. Bouchard is clearly angling for a gig at ABC News – and then possibly even moving to Ireland.