The Global Risks Report 2024 by World Economic Forum (WEF) predicts that misinformation and disinformation, fueled by AI, will be the most severe global risk with upcoming elections in several nations. In India, this is the top risk, and ranks high in the US and European Union as well. WEF predicts that there will be an increase in synthetic content and manipulated information, leading to significant societal divisions and political repression. This will, in turn, lead to a rise in non-consensual deepfake pornography and stock market manipulation. The report suggests that there is unlikely to be effective regulation to match the pace of development. However, countries like Singapore have announced investment in research programs to build tools to curb harmful online content. The ultimate impact of unaddressed misinformation, WEF warns, would be political institution disconnects or broader repression of information flows, with local communities beginning to depend on the government for accurate information.
The Dangers of AI-Powered Misinformation: A Top Global Risk
