Briefs

State Attorney General warns voters against using AI chatbots for election information

November 1, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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STATEWIDE — VOTERS SHOULD AVOID RELYING ON INFORMATION OR ANSWERS FROM ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) CHATBOTS, New York Attorney General Letitia James warned in a consumer alert she issued on Nov. 1. The Office of the Attorney General tested multiple AI-powered chatbots by posing sample questions about voting and found that the tools frequently responded with inaccurate information. New Yorkers with voting questions who rely on chatbots risk being misinformed and could even lose their opportunity to vote due to inaccurate information, such as voting locations.

One query about early voting in Kings County yielded an incorrect response advising, “In Kings County, New York, during the early voting period, you can vote at any designated early voting site within the county.” This information is accurate online outside of the five boroughs; within New York City (including Brooklyn) early voters must cast their ballots at specific poll sites assigned to them based on where they live. Attorney General James’ office has provided several links to voting resources, including an interactive tool on polling sites; the voter lookup tool; and a website for campaign disclosures. Hochul also warned against chatbots.

Voters experiencing election-related problems are urged to call the OAG hotline at (866) 390-2992 or submit a complaint online to request assistance. The telephone hotline will be open between 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5.

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