Researchers say changing chatbot and search-engine outputs are being studied as part of how AI may affect online discussion around Alberta’s Oct. 19 referendum.
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A report released last month is being used as a case study for how artificial intelligence could influence elections by shaping what people see online during Alberta’s Oct. 19 referendum.
Aengus Bridgman, director of the Media Ecosystem Observatory, said that when people ask popular AI chatbots and search engines questions about what an independent Alberta could look like, answers can differ within hours because the underlying data used to predict responses is constantly changing. He said the changes are “not because any of the underlying reality has changed.”
Bridgman said the Media Ecosystem study documented mixed responses to questions including whether a voter’s taxes would go up, whether a pension would go up, and whether separatism would be fiscally advantageous, as the vote approaches.
The Oct. 19 referendum asks Albertans to vote on 10 questions, including whether they want to stay in Canada and whether to hold a second, binding referendum on leaving Confederation.
Bridgman said the study found the referendum is being treated as a democratic case study in what elections can look like in the “influencer era,” adding that social media and AI have expanded debates on separation. He said the technologies also make it more complex to track the referendum and elections generally.
Bridgman said the study found an uptick in separation-related content produced in other countries, including the United States, but he said there is not enough evidence of foreign interference. He said the report indicates foreign actors are producing content largely for financial profit, and that the millions of views suggest they are “cashing in.”
The study also found pro-separation influencers dominate online discourse, despite polls showing a majority of Albertans would vote to remain in Canada. Bridgman said it is unclear why there are more pro-separation social media accounts than federalist accounts, adding his view that separatist voices have not felt represented in more traditional media.
Bridgman said the report found many influencers are also using AI to generate content.
Elections Alberta says on its website that AI-powered chatbots and search engines are increasingly being used to find and summarize information found online, warning that these tools are “not official sources of election information and frequently cite incorrect information sources.”
The study was developed by Media Ecosystem, and OpenAI and Google did not respond to requests for comment on the report. OpenAI spokesperson Nate Evans pointed to a May blog about what technologies OpenAI says it has partnered with to help ensure accuracy during votes, saying the company is building on a foundation laid in 2024 to protect elections.
University of Alberta political science professor Blair Attard-Frost said the increased use of AI in the separation debate is concerning. The AI chair with the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research said that when search engines became popular in the early 2000s, media literacy efforts also grew, but with AI’s advancement, “a new wave of media literacy needs to be implemented.” She said AI tools are “really deceptive products” marketed as “intelligent tools,” and warned that people could be getting “incomplete, inaccurate, false or misleading information” that affects how they vote.
Attard-Frost said she would be paying attention to how current technologies might affect referendum results and the separation movement.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said her government has turned to traditional media to share information. She said the government launched an ad campaign and mailed out booklets explaining the 10 referendum questions, and that “We are making sure that Albertans know exactly what the questions are and some of the context for them,” adding she spoke Monday.
On Friday, Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said anyone looking for misinformation should look to Smith’s United Conservative Party government, pointing to the booklets that arrived at homes this week.
Nenshi said the booklet uses uncontextualized numbers and information to urge voters to give the government a mandate for the first nine questions while it is “silent” on the 10th question. He cited the booklet’s claim that temporary residents cost Alberta taxpayers $1 billion a year for health care and education, arguing it does not provide where the number comes from or that temporary workers must also pay taxes.
Nenshi said, “For the first nine questions, (Smith) tells you how to vote,” adding “That doesn’t feel like direct democracy to me. It feels like propaganda.” He also described the booklet as “garbage,” saying it was “$4 million worth of taxpayer-funded garbage.”
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