Microsoft and OpenAI announced a $2 million fund to combat the growing risks of using AI and deepfakes to “mislead voters and undermine democracy.”
This year, a record 2 billion people will go to the polls in elections in around 50 countries. There are therefore concerns about the influence AI will have on voters, particularly those from “vulnerable communities” who may be more likely to accept what they have chosen. see at its nominal value.
The rise of generative AI, including popular chatbots like ChatGPT, has led to a major new threat landscape involving AI-generated “deepfakes” designed to perpetuate misinformation. It doesn’t help that these new tools are widely available and allow anyone to create fake videos, photos, or audio of high-profile political entities.
As recently as Monday, the Election Commission of India urged political parties to avoid using deepfakes and similar misinformation in their online election campaigns.
It is in this context that all major technology companies, including Microsoft and OpenAI, have signed voluntary commitments to counter these risks, and plan to build a common framework to combat deepfakes created explicitly to mislead voters .
Elsewhere, major AI companies have begun to address these risks by introducing restrictions into their software. For example, Google said it would not allow its Gemini AI chatbot to answer questions about elections, while Facebook’s parent company Meta also limits election-related responses through its AI chatbot.
Microsoft and OpenAI’s new “Societal Resilience Fund” works to “promote AI education and literacy among vulnerable voters and communities,” according to a blog post published today by the companies. This would involve providing grants to a handful of organizations, including Older Adults Technology Services (OATS), the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), the International Institute for Democracy and Election Assistance (International IDEA ) and the Partnership on AI (PAI). .
According to Microsoft, these grants aim to create a better understanding of AI and its capabilities in society. For example, OATS will apparently use its grant for training programs for people aged 50 and over in the United States, covering “fundamental aspects of AI.”
“The launch of the Societal Resilience Fund is just one step that represents Microsoft and OpenAI’s commitment to addressing the challenges and needs in AI literacy and education,” Teresa Hutson, Microsoft’s vice president for technology and corporate responsibility, said in the blog. . “Microsoft and OpenAI will remain dedicated to this work and we will continue to collaborate with organizations and initiatives that share our goals and values. »
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