The presence of AI has been a growing conversation over the last year, and it has now found its way into politics, as Elon Musk shared a parody ad that used Kamala Harris’ voice to say disparaging remarks about herself and President Joe Biden.
Upon first glance, the ad appears legit, utilizing similar visuals as the current Vice President in her campaign for President following Biden backing out of the race. However, the voiceover, while mimicking her voice, made statements that the 59-year-old politician never actually said.
“I, Kamala Harris, am your Democrat candidate for president because Joe Biden finally exposed his senility at the debate,” the AI-generated voice said in the ad. The voice was also programmed to call herself a “diversity hire” and admit that she does not know the “first thing about running the country.”
Elon Musk wrote “This is amazing” with a laughing emoji when he shared the ad this past Friday (July 26). A few days later, he acknowledged that the ad was satire, but claimed that this parody wasn’t a crime. However, certain pundits disagree with that notion, especially knowing that Musk endorsed Donald Trump’s candidacy for President in this upcoming election.
“We believe the American people want the real freedom, opportunity and security Vice President Harris is offering,” Mia Ehrenberg, a spokesperson for Kamala Harris’ campaign, wrote to The Associated Press. “Not the fake, manipulated lies of Elon Musk and Donald Trump.”
Rob Weissman, co-president of the advocacy group Public Citizen, acknowledged that the ad could easily fool people. “I’m certain that most people looking at it don’t assume it’s a joke,” he said. “The quality isn’t great, but it’s good enough. And precisely because it feeds into preexisting themes that have circulated around her, most people will believe it to be real.” He called the video “the kind of thing that we’ve been warning about,” which has been a narrative about AI for some time.
Kamala Harris first began her campaign for the presidency over a week ago after an inspired endorsement from Joe Biden. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President,” he wrote. “And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
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