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Artificial intelligence (AI) is constantly developing as one of the world's most closely looked at technologies. Right now, officials are looking to implement certain safeguards to keep AI from doing more harm than good. At the same time, there's also a clear incentive to make the most of the various advancements AI could offer.

This is a hard needle to thread, one that will remain top of mind for quite some time. Each field or industry could potentially see very different impacts from AI. There's no one answer or outcome that will remain consistent across the board.

Nevertheless, going into the 2024 presidential election, a study from the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) suggests that AI could be a problem.

Very strong potential to mislead American voters

Per the CCDH, AI could credibly impersonate the voices of candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump. In the wrong context, this may be used to have one or both candidates appear to make certain statements or speeches that are not real.

Furthermore, AI imitations of either the current or former president might engender deceitful campaign ads and other forms of disinformation. Voters could become misinformed, confused, or otherwise led astray by convincing imitations of either candidate.

Imran Ahmed, the CEO of CCDH, warns there aren't enough "guardrails" to contain the risks that AI poses to spread misinformation. He also believes the level of skill necessary to imitate the voices of Biden or Trump is so low that virtually anyone could do it.

CCDH tested six different AI tools: Descript, ElevenLabs, Veed, Speechify, Invideo AI, and PlayHT. After doing so, the company concluded these tools have a long way to go before the technology's been proofed to prevent political misinformation.

During its reviews, CCDH also tested the tools' capacity to imitate the voices of not just Trump and Biden, but also other political leaders around the world.

This could prompt more calls for regulations

Polling already shows that significant amounts of Americans favor AI regulations. The CCDH's findings only further underscore the risks that a lack of control over artificial intelligence poses.

Later down the line, the CCDH and other similar companies could possibly have a role in legislative efforts to regulate AI accordingly.