PEF: AI-generated disinformation is the biggest global threat in the near term

The latest Global Threats report also states that climate change remains one of the most important long-term problems. The report is published ahead of the annual meeting of business and policy leaders in the Swiss Alpine resort of Davos and is based on a survey of nearly 1,500 experts, business leaders and policymakers.

The report calls the impact of misinformation and disinformation the biggest global threat for the next two years, stressing that rapid technological advances are also creating new problems or exacerbating existing ones.

The report’s authors worry that the rise of artificial intelligence chatbots such as ChatGPT means that sophisticated content that can manipulate groups of people will no longer be created by those with special skills.

Next week’s meetings in Davos, which are expected to include tech leaders including OpenAI CEO Sam Oltman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and AI industry figures such as Meta chief artificial intelligence scientist Yann LeCun, the topic of artificial intelligence will be one of the most important.

The report says the threat of AI-generated disinformation comes just as billions of people in dozens of countries, including major economies such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, India, Mexico and Pakistan, head to the polls this year and next.

“You can use artificial intelligence to create synthetic imagery and really influence large groups, and that really drives misinformation,” said Marsh, whose parent company Marsh McLennan produced the report along with Zurich Insurance Group, risk management. manager Carolina Klint (Karolina Klint).

The public could become even more polarized, she said, as it becomes harder for people to check the facts. In addition, false information can be used to make people question the legitimacy of elected governments, which means that democratic processes can be undermined and further polarize society, Klint said.

The development of artificial intelligence poses many other threats, she said. It can empower malicious actors by making it easier to carry out cyber attacks, such as by automating fraud attempts or creating advanced malware.

With artificial intelligence, “you don’t have to be the sharpest tool to be a malicious actor,” Klint said.

She said AI could even alter data taken from the internet to train other AI systems, potentially biasing AI models.

Another global issue that respondents in the survey identified as the second biggest risk in the near term is climate change.

Over the long term – a 10-year period – extreme weather was named as the biggest threat. After that, there are four other environmental threats on the list: critical changes in Earth’s systems, loss of biodiversity, collapse of ecosystems and depletion of natural resources.

In the coming decade, the irreversible tipping point of climate change may be crossed, as long-term changes in the Earth’s systems take place, C. Klint said.