Can and should artificial intelligence influence our opinions? – Discussion with school pupils in the Futurium

Berlin, 17 March 2023

Have any of you used AI today? Have any of you expressed their opinion publicly or to a wider audience online, e.g. in a commentary? Have any of you changed their opinion after surfing the Internet or being on social media? Have any of you come across fake news?

PD Dr. Jessica Heesen (Head of the research focus Media Ethics and Information Technology at the International Center for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW) of the University of Tübingen, and member of Plattform Lernende Systeme) asked these introductory questions to start a conversation with pupils of Katholische Schule Salvator and Wilhelm-von-Humboldt-Gemeinschaftsschule.

Artificial intelligence systems are exerting more and more of an influence over how we humans find information on the internet and over the successful dissemination of information. AI systems control how we communicate on social media and provide access to valuable knowledge via search engines. However, AI can also help to spy on people, spread misinformation or create deep fakes. Jessica Heesen outlined and discussed, using specific examples, the influence of AI on the democratic public realm and the formation of personal opinions. She elucidated how AI sorts content, enables certain content to be found and how it reinforces opinions by means of algorithmic recommendation systems.

In the closing discussion the question was asked: How can AI be used constructively for forming opinions? The subsequent debate touched on source-critical use of search engines, improving training data quality and platform regulations for editorial control over content.

acatech is a partner of the Futurium. The discussion took place in the Futurium as part of the festival to launch the new thematic focus “Futures of Democracy”.