Tech companies are concerned about the extent to which artificial intelligence (AI) could influence key national elections this year. “We will have to watch this incredibly closely,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said during a meeting at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. OpenAI is the parent company of the popular ChatGPT.
Nearly half of the world’s population will go to the polls in 2024. Previously, artificial intelligence did not play a major role in national elections. Now, according to Altman, that is the case. “I don’t think it will ever be the same as before,” he said.
The extent to which AI is already able to influence elections remains to be seen, said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. “It is not the first time that we have had to deal with disinformation, misinformation and interference during elections. This is a serious challenge that we will all have to tackle.”
Altman and Nadella made their statements after the first American primary in Iowa, in which former President Donald Trump achieved an easy victory over his Republican competitors. Microsoft previously announced that it would help American politicians tackle fake videos in the run-up to the presidential elections.
ChatGPT was not available when Americans went to the polls for the last time. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates warned in Davos that with generative AI programs, “the bad guys will expand their activities.”
As a warning, videos of AI-generated deepfake votes of politicians in the run-up to last year’s Slovak parliamentary elections were shown at the meeting. They were shared en masse on social media such as Facebook, Instagram and Telegram.
Also read:
CEO of ChatGPT company: “Energy breakthrough needed for the future of AI”
Microsoft makes AI assistant Copilot available for free on smartphones
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and never miss anything from the stars.