Political consultant faces $6M fine for AI Biden robocalls

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) fined a political consultant $6 million for using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create robocalls that mimicked the voice of U.S. President Joe Biden. New Hampshire voters received the calls before the state’s primary elections in January.

The jury found political consultant Steven Kramer guilty of using AI technology to create a fake identity to deceive voters. The FCC charged Kramer with violating the “Truth in Caller ID Act,” which led to the record-breaking fine.

Lingo Telecom, the company Kramer used to conduct the calls, also received a $2 million fine. Kramer faces charges including “voter intimidation,” among 13 other offenses related to the automated calls mimicking Biden.

Since the New Hampshire robocalls, the FCC has taken steps to combat the growing use of artificial intelligence tools in political communications. In February, it confirmed that AI voice-cloning tools in robocalls are banned under existing law, and on Wednesday, it introduced a proposal to require political advertisers to disclose when they use content generated by artificial intelligence in broadcast television and radio ads.