A political consultant who used artificial intelligence (AI) to mimic President Joe Biden’s voice and made fake phone calls before the New Hampshire primary last January was fined $6 million.
According to the Associated Press on the 23rd (local time), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that it would impose a fine of $6 million on Steven Kramer, the man accused of creating the fake Biden voice. This is the first time the FCC has imposed a fine for using generative AI technology.
Kramer was found to have made thousands of fake calls to voters in New Hampshire on January 23. The calls were made in a voice mimicking that of President Biden, who was a leading Democratic candidate. They spread fake news that if one voted in the primary, they would not be able to vote in the November general election. This incident raised major concerns that fake news could be mistaken for real news before the election, which may have a potential impact.
In an interview with the Associated Press in February, Kramer stated that he had no intention of influencing the election results and simply wanted to raise awareness about the potential risks of AI.