Russia, China, and Iran Reportedly Use AI to Boost US Midterm Disinformation

Russian, Iranian, and Chinese operatives are using artificial intelligence tools to accelerate online disinformation campaigns ahead of the Nov. 3 US midterm elections, according to people familiar with US intelligence and independent researchers. While online influence campaigns targeting US voters are already underway, the sources noted there is no evidence foreign actors are targeting voting infrastructure or vote counts. A July report by UK think tank Demos and CASM Technology found Russian actors deliberately targeted AI chatbots over traditional search, getting them to cite falsehoods from a propaganda group as legitimate in nearly 500 of 3,000 queries. Researchers noted this tactic is aided because roughly half of American adults now use chatbots according to Pew Research Center, while many mainstream media outlets block AI scrapers over copyright concerns. US adversaries have previously used OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude to plan propaganda campaigns abroad, though it wasn't clear they were currently doing so for the Nov. 3 midterms. Last week, OpenAI reported a Russian operation used ChatGPT to help establish a fake think tank in Latin America, while Iranian actors used AI tools to refine articles and pitches published by a dozen online news outlets worldwide. In the current midterm campaigns, one person familiar with US intelligence said Russian actors have tried to discredit US lawmakers supporting Ukraine, China-backed efforts targeted races relevant to US-China policy, and Iranian attempts sought to undermine faith in the US electoral system. These operations coincide with the Trump administration dismantling the FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence's Foreign Malign Influence Center. "These tools can help foreign actors plan their operations, identify audiences to target, and figure out how to make their interference more effective." — Senator Mark Warner