--- title: "AI Is Incredibly Good at Changing Voters’ Minds, New Research Finds — With an Incredible Caveat" description: "A new international study led by researchers at MIT found AI chatbots are much better at persuading voters than TV campaign ads." date: "2025-12-07" modified: "2025-12-07" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-voters-persuade-chatbot" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" --- # AI Is Incredibly Good at Changing Voters’ Minds, New Research Finds — With an Incredible Caveat ![A modern American Election Day]() *Getty Images* New research suggests that AI chatbots like ChatGPT can persuade roughly one out of every 25 people to change who they're going to vote for — with one major caveat. First reported [by *The Washington Post*](), the revelation comes as a result of joint [international studies]() led by researchers at MIT. To analyze the potential for AI chatbots to sway voters' minds, the researchers recruited more than 2,000 voting-aged US citizens sit down to talk to either a pro-Donald Trump or pro-Kamala Harris bot. Overall, the Harris bot came out on top, convincing one out of every 21 participants to change their vote. The Trump bot fared much worse, flipping about one in every 35. "I certainly see it now from your perspective and \[I\] must say Kamala Harris really shows sigs \[sic\] of a trustworthy candidate," [one study participant wrote]() after their conversation with the bot. (During their initial interview, that same voter had referred to Harris as "fishy.") While one in 25 might not sound like a ton, it shakes out to four percent of the study's total population. That's actually quite impressive, and according to *WaPo*, is more effective than the typical TV campaign ad. However, there's one incredible catch to all of this: voters were swayed just the same by false information as they were by factual info. "One implication of this is, if \[AI companies\] put a thumb on the scale and set the models up to push for one side or another, it could meaningfully change people’s minds," said David Rand, a co-author of the studies. "The more info you give people, the more they change their minds." Overall, researchers found the chatbots were at their most persuasive when they simply vomited up claims — factual or otherwise — in a big list. Other voter outreach tactics, like [deep canvassing](), which relies on storytelling and empathy, were much less effective for the bots. **More on AI chatbots:** *[Report Finds That Leading Chatbots Are a Disaster for Teens Facing Mental Health Struggles]()* ## 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]()