Forecasting potential misuses of language models for disinformation campaigns and how to reduce risk
OpenAI Blog
OpenAI researchers partnered with Georgetown University and Stanford's Internet Observatory to study how language models could be weaponized for spreading disinformation. The project involved a workshop with 30 experts in October 2021 and produced a report analyzing threats and mitigation strategies. The findings provide a framework for identifying and reducing risks from language models being used to amplify false information at scale.
Why it matters
OpenAI researchers collaborated with Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology and the Stanford Internet Observatory to investigate how large language models might be misused for disinformation purposes. The collaboration included an October 2021 workshop bringing together 30 disinformation researchers, machine learning experts, and policy analysts, and culminated in a co-authored report building on more than a year of research. This report outlines the threats that language models pose to the information environment if used to augment disinformation campaigns and introduces a framework for analyzing potential mitigations. Read the full report here.
