June 13, 2024
Longer description:
Lobbying is seen as a bad thing in politics, a negative influence often connected to corruption, secrecy and poor behaviour.
This paper asks how AI can change lobbying for better or worse. It looks in turn at how AI can allow different groups to do the same things but better; and do new things. It draws on examples from the UK and US, as well as wider academic studies, to predict what may happen, and offer a framework.
Turning to those doing the lobbying, it asks if AI can make lobbyist more powerful. Will it help lobbyists to use big data to pinpoint lobbying spots, or to mass mobilise the public? Or can it even introduce robots as lobbyists, and if so, how does this link to issues of manipulation and fake/misinformation either to voters or politicians? It then asks if the presence of AI creates a ‘double black box’ of secrecy.
On the other side, it examines whether AI can make lobbying regulation and those monitoring it more powerful. Can it be used to better watch lobbying, or raise awareness of problems? Can it allow the groups monitoring lobbying to act as a police patrol or fire alarm? Far into the future, could robots act as lobby monitors?