MIT AI Risk Repository · Risk Sub-Category · 52.02.03

Politically motivated misuse

Category: Misuse Risks

Description

"General purpose AI models could exacerbate existing tactics for political destabilisation, such as disinformation campaigns, and surveillance efforts if misused for political motivations. The technological advancements in text and media generation of general purpose AI models could refine disinformation164 attempts to shape and polarise public opinion or influence important political events.165 The improved automated processing of text, audio, image, and video could be used for surveillance measures and exacerbate human right violations and repression of political oppositions."

From Governing General Purpose AI: A Comprehensive Map of Unreliability, Misuse and Systemic Risks (Maham2023 ), as extracted by the MIT AI Risk Repository (CC BY 4.0).

Classification

Causal entity
Human

Subdomain definition: Using AI systems to conduct large-scale disinformation campaigns, malicious surveillance, or targeted and sophisticated automated censorship and propaganda, with the aim to manipulate political processes, public opinion and behavior.

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