AI boosts democratic process but concerns remain over its use to spread misinformation, influence elections

COMPLEX ISSUE

Microsoft president Brad Smith said at the hearing that 2024 is a critical year for elections not only for the US but also “for the United Kingdom, for India, (and) across the European Union.”

The question of what can be done about deepfakes and other AI content is a complex issue in the US, where freedom of speech is a constitutional right. 

Despite the potential for foreign interference in elections, observers said banning the technology may not be the answer.

“We need to avoid having especially foreign entities interfere in our elections, but at the same time, AI-generated content is speech,” said Dr William Dally, chief scientist at tech firm Nvidia, whose chips are used in AI applications. 

“And I think it would be a dangerous precedent to try to ban something. I think it’s much better to have disclosure than to ban something outright.”