After OpenAI, Elon Musk’s X says 200,000 China-linked bots targeted US AI debate

In the recent aftermath of OpenAI's report linking China with datacentre protests across America, Elon Musk's conglomerate X, formerly known as Twitter, has echoed similar findings. The company has disclosed the existence of a bot farm network comprising approximately 200,000 accounts as part of its ongoing safety investigation into potentially deceptive Chinese accounts. This revelation was made public on X's Global Government Affairs page.

Out of these 200,000 accounts, a mere 200 were found to be instrumental in posting content, which according to X, could potentially influence a genuine debate surrounding American AI and energy policy. These posts included claims regarding AI data centers driving up household electricity prices and straining the grid, along with AI-generated cartoons depicting data-center operators profiteering at the expense of the public.

Interestingly, some of these posts were even using OpenAI's chatbot to generate illustrations and formulate talking points, a detail that echoes the methods described in OpenAI's report published in June. OpenAI had previously noted that accounts believed to be based in China were utilizing ChatGPT to create anti-data center content, with these users likely operating as part of a social media team at a private Chinese company, working for local government clients.

Despite the discovery, X remains dedicated to upholding an open and authentic platform for public discourse. The company reaffirms its commitment to identifying and suspending any accounts that violate its authenticity policy. X has also included samples of the influencer posts to substantiate its claims, mirroring the approach taken by OpenAI in its June report.