US agency weighs easing rules on AI political robocalls to cellphones ahead of election

A Democratic member of the Federal Communications Commission urged the agency on Wednesday not to allow a new form of AI-generated political robocalls from the conservative political group Club for Growth, ahead of the upcoming election prompting scrutiny regarding how the technology could be used in campaigns.

The group, which is spending millions of dollars ahead of the November US congressional elections, asked the FCC to allow it to make political calls to cell phones usingAI-generated robocalls without obtaining prior explicit permission.

In this connection, FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said: “The FCC allows a dark money group to flood Americans’ phones with AI-generated robocalls they never agreed to receive, it would bring chaos so close to Election Day.”

Furthermore, club for growth President David McIntosh clarified that the group wants the FCC to treat First-Amendment political speech the same way it tests wireless calls about package deliveries, and doctor’s appointments.

Senior counsel in the Democracy Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, Mekela Panditharatne warned that such calls pose liabilities. AI systems could make false promises in conversation giving inaccurate information regardless of whether there is an intent to deceive.

The Club for Growth has contended that the waiver would help a more regulatory landscape given that unsolicited automated calls to landlines are currently permitted. If the waiver is granted, callers would still be restricted by certain conditions, including opt-out compliance, call capping and making no more than three calls within 30 days to each individual recipient.