According to the report, companies like ElevenLabs have introduced tools that use AI to create voices. Newsguard, a company that monitors fake news online, found that TikTok videos were using fake voices of the likes of former US president Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey. While TikTok is popular, the report also states that platforms like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube are also being used to spread fake voice-based videos. The number of videos are reportedly less as of now but experts worry that this could become a weapon, especially as the US presidential elections are to be held in 2024.
What TikTok has to say on the issue
Videos that use AI-generated content are required to have a label that specifies clearly the same. The social media platform said that it had removed several accounts and videos for violating its policies, including the one that used Obama’s voice. “TikTok is the first platform to provide a tool for creators to label A.I.-generated content and an inaugural member of a new code of industry best practices promoting the responsible use of synthetic media,” said Jamie Favazza, a spokeswoman for TikTok. However, Newsguard found that the labels were missing from videos that had used fake voices.
According to the report, YouTube has banned political ads from using AI-generated content. Other advertisers also have to ensure that their ads have labels that indicated AI has been used to create content. Meta — the parent company of Facebook and Instagram — also has a fact-checking toolkit that adds label when a video is altered or not using AI.