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- By Abhirupa Kundu
- Thu, 08 Feb 2024 06:25 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Generative Artificial Intellligence (AI) is increasingly getting integrated into our daily lives and now even into the political sector which is gradually leveraging tech for elections, the backbone of any democracy. In the backdrop of this, Indonesia, the world's third-largest democracy, with 250 million voters under 40 has resorted to Generative AI for campaigns that even would want the citizens to vote for a once feared former special forces commander. The doe-eyed cartoon version portrays General Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia's defence minister. On social his chubby-cheeked AI avatar makes Korean-style finger hearts and cradles his beloved cat, Bobby, to the delight of Gen Z voters.
Political consultant Yose Rizal said the Pemilu.AI app he developed uses OpenAI's GPT-4 and 3.5 software to craft hyper-local campaign strategies and speeches. He plans to take the platform to India, where the voters will exercise their franchise for the upcoming Lok Sabha election.
The AI-generated cartoon has been central to the electoral rebranding of Prabowo, who is far ahead in the polls. Instead of portraying himself as a fiery nationalist, as he did in two prior failed presidential bids, the 72-year-old's new catchphrase is "gemoy" - which is Indonesian slang for cute and cuddly. "I'll vote for him because he's gemoy," said Putri, a first-time voter, reported Reuters.
A billboard promoting Indonesia's Defence Minister and Presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, showcasing their AI cartoon versions. (Photo credit: Reuters)
The general elections on February 14 in Indonesia offer a glimpse of how generative AI may transform large-scale political campaigning, experts say.
Google confirmed that Pemilu.AI had done preliminary work using its AI and became a cloud service customer. Google said there are no restrictions on using its Bard chatbot for political campaigning, beyond a ban on misinformation.
The Indonesian elections are testing the limits of what some AI companies consider political campaigning. OpenAI's rules, updated on January 10, prohibit using its technology for any political campaigning or lobbying, including generating campaign materials personalized or targeted to specific demographics.
The same month, OpenAI banned the developer of a bot for US Democratic presidential hopeful Dean Phillips, the first time it took action over such rules. Supporters of the use of generative AI in Indonesia's election say it has given legislative candidates access to custom campaigning tools that would otherwise be reserved for major contenders with larger budgets.
The continued adoption of AI is only natural, said Razi Thalib, who runs the digital team for another presidential contender, Anies Baswedan, a former governor of Jakarta.
"Perhaps the results of the election will lead to lessons learnt that will increase the adoption rate" elsewhere, he said.
(With Reuters inputs)
