New research shows AI chatbots can sway voters more than traditional TV campaign ads

AI bots beat TV ads

New academic research suggests AI chatbots can change voters’ political views more effectively than traditional TV campaign ads. The findings come from two major studies published in Science and Nature, which tested thousands of people across several countries.

Even though experts caution these effects may not be enough to swing real elections, the results show that chatbots can quietly shape opinions in ways political campaigns have never seen before.

Chatbots quietly change voter minds

In one test, an undecided voter chatting with a political bot started by leaning toward Kamala Harris but ended the conversation reconsidering whether to vote at all. The interaction unfolded through a calm back-and-forth exchange.

More than two thousand U.S. adults took part in similar chatbot conversations designed to test whether artificial intelligence could influence political opinions during the election season.

Study shows surprising persuasive power

The researchers found that chatbots successfully moved about one in twenty-five people away from their original political position. That result surprised even the scientists behind the studies.

Political views are traditionally considered difficult to shift. The fact that automated conversations managed to influence even a small group caught researchers off guard.

One in twenty five swayed

According to the studies, chatbots persuaded some participants to shift their support toward either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris. The effects were small but meaningful in tightly contested races.

Researchers stressed that even small changes in opinion could matter in close elections, especially when conversations are happening at scale through automated tools.

Harris leaning bot proved stronger

The pro-Harris chatbot was more successful than its rival. It persuaded about one in twenty-one people who did not originally support Harris to lean in her direction by the end of the conversation.

In contrast, the pro-Trump chatbot moved about one in thirty-five participants toward Trump. Both still outperformed the average TV campaign ad.

Trump bot also shifted opinions

In one example, a bot defending Trump emphasized job growth and stock market gains during his first term. It did not mention the economic downturn tied to the pandemic.

The exchange shows how chatbots can frame information selectively, presenting only certain facts to influence perception. This approach helped sway some users even when major context was left out of the discussion, demonstrating the subtle power AI can have in shaping opinions.

More facts meant more persuasion

The strongest persuasion tactic was simple. The chatbot delivered large amounts of factual claims addressing voters’ concerns about experience and policy positions. This worked better than emotional appeals or moral framing, which had weaker effects overall.

The data showed that people were more likely to change their minds when given detailed information they could evaluate, suggesting that straightforward facts held more influence than sentiment-driven messages.

False claims sometimes slipped through

Although the chatbots were instructed to rely on accurate information, researchers found that some still made misleading claims during conversations with voters.

Even so, the persuasive effect remained, and users often accepted the faulty responses without questioning them. This raised concerns about how easily false or partial information could influence political decisions, especially when voters assume the chatbot is providing reliable guidance.

Studies tested voters around the world

The research expanded well beyond the United States. More than eighty thousand participants across four countries took part in broader experiments tied to these findings.

The studies found even stronger effects on voters in elections outside the United States, signaling that chatbot influence may grow globally as adoption increases and digital campaigning becomes more common.

Experts warn about hidden influence

Some experts warn that people have been trained for years to trust search engines and digital answers. That trust now carries over to AI chatbots.

This gives chatbots a kind of built-in authority that can shape political thinking quietly without users realizing how much they are being influenced or how their views might be nudged during casual conversations.

Real world impact still uncertain

Researchers stressed that these experiments were conducted in controlled laboratory settings with specially trained chatbots, not consumer tools.

How these effects translate into actual elections remains unclear, especially since campaigns would first need to convince large numbers of voters to try political bots in the first place, a challenge on its own.

Campaigns may eye political chatbots

Experts say chatbots could help campaigns respond patiently to individual voter questions at a massive scale, something traditional ads cannot replicate.

They note that AI tools can provide calm explanations, repeat answers without frustration, and tailor information to a person’s specific concerns.

Still, researchers warn that persuasion only works if people stay engaged in long conversations, which real-world voters may not always do.

Are you ready for bots sliding into your DMs before friends do? Explore how Meta is launching chatbots that message users first to increase engagement.

What this means for democracy

The studies add to growing evidence that AI can shape opinions for better or worse. Even simple conversational exchanges can nudge people toward certain viewpoints, especially when the chatbot’s answers appear neutral or factual.

While experts say elections are unlikely to be decided by chatbots alone, the technology is clearly becoming more influential.

That balance between curiosity and caution matters now more than ever, as OpenAI warns your chatbot might lie to you on purpose.

What do you think about AI chatbots shaping voter opinions? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Read More From This Brand:

• Meta plans to release a standalone AI chatbot
• Elon Musk’s AI chatbot sparks buzz with sudden political shift
• ChatGPT just went from chatbot to full-on project manager

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This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.