{
  "id": 12157467,
  "title": "We’ve tracked $80M of spending on almost 170 AI-generated political ads this year – it’s weird",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/weve-tracked-80m-of-spending-on-almost-170-ai-generated-political-ads",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-05T12:15:41.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Conversation",
    "slug": "the-conversation",
    "url": "https://theconversation.com/weve-tracked-80m-of-spending-on-almost-170-ai-generated-political-ads-this-year-its-weird-292105"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the 2026 U.S. midterm campaigns, AI-generated political ads are becoming increasingly prevalent on television and social media. Researchers have tracked approximately $80 million in spending on nearly 170 unique ads that utilize AI. The findings have been surprising, with AI use ranging from hyperrealistic deepfakes to subtle enhancements.\n\nRepublican sponsors, both candidates and interest groups, are far more likely to employ AI in their ads compared to Democratic sponsors. Out of the 170 ads tracked, 80% were sponsored by Republicans, accounting for 83% of the total spending. This partisan gap may reflect the differing philosophical approaches of the parties towards AI use in political advertising.\n\nConcerns about deepfakes have led politicians and watchdog groups to express alarm over campaigns utilizing generative AI to create synthetic videos of politicians doing things they did not do. Several examples have surfaced, including deepfakes of Donald Trump, Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, with the latter being a favorite among Republican advertisers.\n\nNot only politicians have appeared in these AI-generated ads, but also individuals not connected to politics, such as a fake Dr. Anthony Fauci. Some ads even feature crowds or constituents generated by AI, which, when combined with subtle enhancements, can make it difficult for viewers to discern whether the content is false.\n\nAI-generated visuals don't always appear drastically different from traditional ads, making it challenging for viewers to determine whether the content is authentic or not. Some ads, like those from Republican candidate Chip Keating, include disclaimers about AI usage, but they don't specify how AI was employed.\n\nDue to the patchwork of state legislation, many AI-generated political ads do not disclose their use of AI. Limited disclosure makes tracking AI usage in ads even more difficult, as researchers have relied on media coverage and trained student coders to flag potentially AI-generated content. In 35 states, only 31% of the ads tracked, representing 22% of the spending, disclosed AI usage.\n\nThe wording of these disclaimers varied significantly across states. For instance, one Georgia ad clearly stated, \"This video has been manipulated or generated with artificial intelligence,\" while an Oklahoma ad claimed, \"Political satire. AI-generated images do not depict actual events.\" Another North Carolina state Senate ad humorously declared, \"You guessed it! AI was definitely used to generate these silly video clips.\"\n\nThe relationship between state laws and the use of AI disclaimers is inconsistent. Even when a state requires disclaimers for AI-generated ads, advertisers may not include them. Conversely, in states without such laws, 32% of the ads contained a disclaimer, compared to 29% in states with AI-specific laws.\n\nState laws governing AI use in political ads show variability. Colorado's law applies only to candidate deepfakes, while Louisiana's law only came into effect after an ad had already aired. Minnesota's ban on deepfakes in political ads remains uncertain, as an ad featuring synthetic video of Democratic Senate candidate Peggy Flanagan aired despite the law's prohibition.",
  "summary": "Almost 170 ads and $80 million in spending and only 31% with a disclaimer: Here’s what researchers found when they tracked AI in this year’s campaign ads.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}