Meta Claims AI Had Only ‘Modest’ Impact on 2024 Global Elections
On Tuesday, Meta revealed it effectively repressed AI election prediction misinformation during a critical election year, revealing that generative AI attempts had minimal success in bypassing the giant’s advanced defenses.
Nick Clegg, Meta’s President, Global Affairs at Meta recited the giant’s hard-wearing strategies for thwarting disinformation campaigns, adding that despite global concerns of an AI influence on elections, generative AI had limited success in bypassing Meta’s defenses.
“The use of generative AI wasn’t a particularly effective tool for disinformation campaigns,” Clegg said.
The tech giant operated AI and the 2024 election operations globally, including in the US, India, Brazil, and the European Union (EU), to address content issues during elections involving an estimated two billion people voted worldwide.
AI and Elections Misinformation Around Meta’s Response
Meta reported dismantling 20 covert influence operations in 2024, primarily from Russia, Iran, and China, totaling 39 Russian, 31 Iranian, and 11 Chinese campaigns since 2017 to manipulate public discourse. Advanced tools helped Meta rapidly label or remove AI-generated manipulated deepfakes content.
In the US, a month before election day, Meta rejected 590,000 AI-generated image requests featuring political figures like President Joe Biden and then-candidate Donald Trump.
“Any impact was modest and limited in scope,” added Clegg, to complete the thought on how effective these measures have been for the platform.
Challenges Beyond Meta’s Ecosystem
While Meta succeeded in its AI in elections in 2024 efforts, Clegg commented that disinformation activities are shifting to other platforms like TikTok, in magnitudes, describing them as an emerging source of AI-driven misinformation.
Pew survey “AI in Elections”, found that most Americans fear AI’s harmfulness to the 2024 elections. Meta said it continues to balance content moderation with freedom of expression, with Clegg acknowledging that combating misinformation remains a moving target as bad actors adapt and exploit new technologies.
The growing prevalence of deepfake videos and AI election prediction generated content has added a layer of complexity, making it increasingly difficult to discern fact from fiction online. Meta highlighted its ongoing commitment to investing in AI tools and human moderation to enhance AI and presidential election misinformation detection and mitigation efforts across its platforms.
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