--- title: "Experts Warn of AI Swarms Hijacking Democracy With Fake Citizens" description: "Researchers warn of the growing risk of massive AI swarms manipulating popular sentiment and upending democracy as we know it." date: "2026-04-26" modified: "2026-04-26" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-swarm-democracy-security" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" --- # Experts Warn of AI Swarms Hijacking Democracy With Fake Citizens ![A large group of identical humanoid robots standing closely together on a teal surface. They have a smooth, pinkish exterior with visible joint segments and circular blue and orange details on their heads, arms, and legs. All robots have their hands on their hips and are facing forward, creating a uniform and organized appearance. The lighting casts shadows behind them, emphasizing their three-dimensional form.]() *Getty / Futurism* AI isn't all chatbots and meme generators. According to a [new study]() published in the journal *Science*, it can also serve as a fountain of misinformation — and all it takes is for someone to turn open the spigot. The new research examines the scale at which AI, namely large language models (LLMs) and autonomous agents, can be used to manipulate opinions on a "population-wide level." The researchers point to a specific threat in the form of AI swarms: massive assemblages of autonomous AI tools that can ape real humans en masse via the internet and social media. According to the researchers, available evidence indicates "organized social media manipulation has expanded from 28 countries in 2017 to 70 countries" today, in nations ranging from the Philippines to the United States, and plenty of places in between. Incidents of AI-driven misinformation in [Brazilian]() and [Irish]() elections, for example, make it clear that democratic institutions are already under fire from these kinds of threats, which researchers say are growing in sophistication. "Fusing LLM reasoning with multiagent architectures, these systems are capable of coordinating autonomously, infiltrating communities, and fabricating consensus efficiently," the paper's abstract warns. Legislating against that type of interference raises confounding issues, like whether propaganda botnets count as free speech. Indeed, some of these AI bot networks operate right out in the open as for-profit startups, [courting millions]() from venture capitalists. Even before AI, the emergence of a few [unaccountable]() social media platforms had created the conditions necessary for large-scale misinformation campaigns to flourish. Even before AI, these kinds of campaigns have had devastating consequences in the real world, like the [Facebook-enabled Rohingya genocide]() in Myanmar. We're already seeing previews of what AI-enabled misinformation campaigns look like in practice, often in the form of right wing actors stirring fury over [welfare recipients]() or [immigrants](). Whatever comes as a result of AI misinformation, it's clear the path was laid years ago — and there's [alarmingly little]() political will to turn back now. **More on AI ethics:** *[Tech Companies Are Using Insidious Tactics to Build Data Centers on Indigenous Lands, Activists Say]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()