Vice President Kamala Harris has become the likely Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential election, following President Joe Biden’s decision to end his reelection bid. However, a manipulated parody video featuring Harris has recently gone viral, raising concerns about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to spread misinformation.
On July 26, tech billionaire Elon Musk shared the video on his X account, captioning it as “This is amazing 😂.” The video, which has amassed over 130 million views since its posting, features a voice resembling Harris, claiming that she is a diversity hire and lacks the ability to run the country. Some viewers questioned the authenticity of the video, speculating whether it was created using AI technology.
The VERIFY team has confirmed that the video shared by Musk is not a genuine campaign ad for Harris. It is a manipulated parody video created by conservative pundit and YouTuber Christopher Kohls, known as Mr. Reagan. Kohls openly stated that the video is a parody of Harris’ actual campaign ad released on July 25.
The parody video includes clips from Harris’ real campaign ad, as well as authentic past footage of the vice president. However, the voice in the video has been altered using generative AI technology to make it appear as if Harris is making disparaging remarks about herself and Biden.
Musk shared the video without disclosing that it was a parody. When questioned about it, a spokesperson for the Harris campaign, Mia Ehrenberg, criticized the dissemination of manipulated content, stating that the American people want the genuine message of freedom, opportunity, and security that Harris offers.
Experts specializing in AI-generated media have reviewed the video and confirmed that a significant portion of the audio was created using AI technology. Hany Farid, a digital forensics expert and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, praised the quality of the AI-generated voice. However, both Farid and Rob Weissman, co-president of consumer rights advocacy group Public Citizen, expressed concerns about the potential harm such technology can cause if not regulated properly.
Currently, Congress has yet to pass legislation regarding the use of AI-generated content in politics, and federal agencies have taken limited steps in this regard. The responsibility of regulating AI usage largely falls on individual states, with more than one-third of states having implemented their own laws.
Neither Musk nor Kohls have provided comments on the matter at the time of publication.