Most in new survey wary of AI-powered election information

Most Americans say they don’t trust artificial intelligence-powered chatbots to produce accurate information about the 2024 election, according to a new survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts.

In the poll, released Tuesday, 64 percent of respondents say they are either not very confident (38 percent) or not at all confident (26 percent) that “information from artificial intelligence, chatbots or search results, is reliable and factual.”

Another 30 percent say they are somewhat confident, but only 5 percent say they are either extremely confident (1 percent) or very confident (4 percent).

Americans say they are worried it might be difficult to find “factual and accurate information about the 2024 presidential election” as Election Day nears.

In the survey, 43 percent say artificial intelligence (AI) use will make it much or somewhat more difficult to find information about the election, while 16 percent say AI use will make it much or somewhat easier. Another 40 percent say AI use will neither make it easier nor more difficult to find information.

The results come at a time when Americans, particularly younger adults, increasingly rely on AI chatbots in their everyday lives.

While AI-powered chatbots can be a great tool for Americans, some experts have raised concerns about the accuracy of the information that they are providing. Last month, five secretaries of state called on Elon Musk to fix an AI chatbot on the social platform X, saying it was spreading election misinformation.

Artificial intelligence has also presented challenges to other aspects of elections. Ahead of the New Hampshire primary, an AI-generated robocall to voters was imitating President Biden’s voice and urging them to stay home instead of voting.

The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and USAFacts poll of 1,019 adults was conducted July 29 to Aug. 8. The margin of sampling error for all respondents is 4 percentage points.