The social media platform X has recently modified its AI chatbot following a complaint from five secretaries of state regarding the spread of election misinformation. The top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Washington sent a letter to Elon Musk raising concerns that the platform’s AI chatbot Grok was disseminating false information about state ballot deadlines after President Joe Biden exited the 2024 presidential race.
In response to the secretaries of state’s request, X’s chatbot now directs users inquiring about election-related information to visit CanIVote.org, a voting information website managed by the National Association of Secretaries of State. Prior to providing responses to election-related queries, the chatbot now displays a message advising users to visit Vote.gov for accurate and up-to-date information about the 2024 U.S. Elections.
The five secretaries of state commended X’s action to enhance their platform by promoting access to reliable information from trusted sources in the crucial election year. Although Grok is exclusively available to premium subscribers of X, misinformation from the chatbot spread to multiple social media platforms and was viewed by millions of individuals before corrections were made, according to the secretaries.
Notably, the adjustment to the chatbot does not seem to address its capability to generate misleading AI-created images related to elections. Users have been utilizing the tool to upload bogus images of various candidates, such as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. Grok was introduced last year for premium X subscribers and was described by Musk as a rebellious AI chatbot capable of answering unconventional questions rejected by other AI systems.
Social media platforms have faced increased scrutiny for their role in spreading misinformation, including during elections. The letter from the secretaries of state cautioned against the prevalence of inaccuracies in AI products, particularly chatbots like Grok that rely on extensive language models.
Following Musk’s acquisition of Twitter in 2022 and its rebranding as X, concerns have arisen regarding a rise in hate speech and misinformation on the platform, along with reductions in the moderation staff. Experts suggest that these actions represent a setback from the progress previously made by social media platforms in combating political disinformation post the 2016 U.S. presidential election, potentially exacerbating a misinformation crisis leading up to this year’s November elections.
