Chatbots 'can meaningfully shift political opinions'

Chatbots can help you plan a vacation.

- STEVEN LEE MYERS TEDDY ROSENBLUTH

They can check facts and offer advice. Can they also sway your politics?A pair of studies published last week in the journals Nature and Science found that a short interaction with a chatbot powered by artificial intelligence could meaningfully shift some people’s opinions about a political candidate or issue.

Having a brief conversation with a trained chatbot proved roughly four times as persuasive as television ads from recent American presidential elections, one of the studies found.

The findings suggest that AI could play an increasing role in political campaigns, including in next year's pivotal midterm elections in the United States, giving candidates and others tools to sway even those who say they have already made up their minds.

"This is where there's going to be the frontier of innovation for political campaigning," said David G. Rand, a professor of information science and marketing at Cornell University who worked on both studies.