AI Deepfakes and Bots Threaten to Sway Israel's October 27 Elections as Watchdogs Warn of Mass Misinformation
As Israel heads toward parliamentary elections on October 27, artificial intelligence is playing a major role for the first time, with deepfakes and automated bots raising fears of voter manipulation.
For the first time, artificial intelligence is taking center stage in Israel's elections, and observers are warning that it could distort the vote. AI-generated deepfakes—videos that make people appear to say or do things they never did—along with automated bots and organized influence campaigns are raising concerns about the spread of misinformation and eroding public trust ahead of the October 27 parliamentary elections [266091].
The warnings come as deepfakes increasingly target public figures around the world. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is seeking to trademark her voice to protect herself from AI-generated videos that mimic a person's voice or face to spread false information, and her office confirmed the trademark request as part of a wider effort to guard against disinformation ahead of upcoming elections [262718]. The technology can create highly realistic clips that are hard to tell apart from real footage [262718].
Israel's election debate has also been shaped by AI rhetoric. Opposition leaders are criticizing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new security doctrine, calling it "empty slogans" as elections approach. Yair Lapid compared the document to the work of a free AI chatbot, suggesting it lacks real substance, while Gadi Eisenkot accused Netanyahu of using fear to distract from security failures [265571].
Separately, ahead of the same October 27 vote, several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are reporting on the methods Israeli settlers use to force Palestinians from their land in the occupied West Bank. These groups describe the situation as a "tsunami of Jewish terrorism," and the reports also highlight the obstacles settlers place in the way of local olive harvests, a key source of income for many Palestinian families ">[266070].