Skip to main content
MIT AI Risk Initiative
BackAI contributes to increased online polarisation
Home/Risks/Clarke2023/AI contributes to increased online polarisation
Worsened epistemic processes for society
AI is used to scale up production of fal…

AI contributes to increased online polarisation

A Survey of the Potential Long-term Impacts of AI: How AI Could Lead to Long-term Changes in Science, Cooperation, Power, Epistemics and Values

Sub-category
Risk Domain
3Misinformation
3.2Pollution of information ecosystem and loss of consensus reality

Highly personalized AI-generated misinformation creating “filter bubbles” where individuals only see what matches their existing beliefs, undermining shared reality, weakening social cohesion and political processes.

"One of the most significant commercial uses of current AI systems is in the content recommendation algorithms of social media companies, and there are already concerns that this is contributing to worsened polarisation online"(p. 6)

Entity— Who or what caused the harm

Human

Due to a decision or action made by humans

AI system

Due to a decision or action made by an AI system

Other

Due to some other reason or is ambiguous

Intent— Whether the harm was intentional or accidental

Intentional

Due to an expected outcome from pursuing a goal

Unintentional

Due to an unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal

Other

Without clearly specifying the intentionality

Timing— Whether the risk is pre- or post-deployment

Pre-deployment

Occurring before the AI is deployed

Post-deployment

Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed

Other

Without a clearly specified time of occurrence

Part of Worsened epistemic processes for society

Other risks from Clarke2023 (19)

Worsened conflict

6.4 Competitive dynamics
HumanOtherOther

Worsened conflict > AI enables development of weapons of mass destruction

4.2 Cyberattacks, weapon development or use, and mass harm
HumanIntentionalPost-deployment

Worsened conflict > AI enables automation of military decision-making

5.2 Loss of human agency and autonomy
AI systemUnintentionalPost-deployment

Worsened conflict > AI-induced strategic instability

5.2 Loss of human agency and autonomy
AI systemUnintentionalPost-deployment

Worsened conflict > Resource conflicts driven by AI development

6.4 Competitive dynamics
OtherUnintentionalPre-deployment

Increased power concentration and inequality

6.1 Power centralization and unfair distribution of benefits
AI systemUnintentionalPost-deployment
View all 19 risks from this paper →