Channel 4 Talks to AI Steve, the Computer Bot Standing for Parliament

This is quite a different stance on campaigning for the forthcoming general election. Way back in the 1980s Channel 4 released onto our screens Max Headroom, the world’s first computer generated video jockey to entertain the nation with pop videos and witty banter. Well, Max himself never was really computer generated. Only the background was, and Max himself was played by Canadian actor Matt Frewer. But the series, and Headroom’s quips, wry observations and barbed comments, are fondly remembered by people like myself.

Now it seems technology is catching up, and has spawned AI Steve, the world’s first computer-generated politico. His image is based on his creator, Steve Endacott, a businessman who once stood as local councillor for the Tories. He says later in this interview that he was made to stand by the party, who told him that he shouldn’t worry too much as he wouldn’t get in anyway. ‘What’s the point?’ he asks. AI Steve itself is a chatbot, and the Channel 4 journo tests it by asking it questions such as who is likely to form the next government and whether children as young as 16 should have the vote. It replies that Labour will likely win the election, and it’s in favour of 16 year-olds having the franchise. Endacott himself, who would represent AI Steve in parliament, is currently on holiday in Ibiza. When he’s asked whether he should be doing this, two weeks away from the election, he replies that it’s his wife’s birthday and so she has to have it. Behind Endacott there’s a team of creators, who look through the questions people ask the bot for suggestions and policy ideas, and then frame Endacott’s/AI Steve’s own policies accordingly.

But there is a serious point behind this. Endacott states that there’s the danger that AIs can be used to spread fake electoral information, and we need strong legislation to prevent this from happening. We thus need people in parliament who understand Artificial Intelligence.

This is a fair point, but the idea of computer generated politicians reminded me of a joke Max himself said on his show: ‘How do you tell when a politician’s lying? His lips move’. It’s certainly true of Sunak and Starmer!

Tags: AI, AI Steve, Businessmen, Channel 4, Chatbots, Conservatives, Fake News, General Elections, Ibiza, Labour Party, Local Councils, Matt Frewer, Max Headroom, Misinformation, Pop Videos, Voting Age, Youtube