The US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has enlisted the services of Accrete AI, a New York-based company, to implement a software solution designed for identifying “real-time” disinformation hazards across social media platforms.
“We are at the dawn of an entirely new type of conflict driven by rapid advances in artificial intelligence,” the press release announcing the partnership reads. “Whereas nuclear proliferation threatened entire populations, AI proliferation individualizes warfare by manipulating targeted groups through digital means. Using AI, bad actors can propagate disinformation to exploit ignorance and weaken civil society causing billions of dollars of damage to the U.S. economy,” commented Prashant Bhuyan, Founder, CEO, and Chairman of Accrete, Inc. “As a prime defense contractor licensing configurable dual-use AI software directly to the DoD, Accrete is in a unique position to scale its business with the Defense, Intelligence, and Special Operations communities, as well as other government and enterprise customers, and bolster national security as well as intelligence competitiveness in previously unimaginable ways.”
Accrete AI’s Argus anomaly detection AI software meticulously examines data from social media, effectively capturing “emerging narratives,” and subsequently produces intelligence reports. These reports empower military units to swiftly counteract disinformation threats.
“Synthetic media, including AI-generated viral narratives, deep fakes, and other harmful social media-based applications of AI, pose a serious threat to US national security and civil society,” Accrete founder and CEO Prashant Bhuyan said.
“Social media is widely recognized as an unregulated environment where adversaries routinely exploit reasoning vulnerabilities and manipulate behavior through the intentional spread of disinformation,” Bhuyan claimed. “USSOCOM is at the tip of the spear in recognizing the critical need to identify and analytically predict social media narratives at an embryonic stage before those narratives evolve and gain traction. Accrete is proud to support USSOCOM’s mission.”
The US Department of Defense initially joined forces with Accrete under the licensing contract for the Argus platform in November 2022. Additionally, the company disclosed its upcoming launch of an enterprise edition of Argus Social for detecting disinformation, slated for later this year. This AI software is geared towards safeguarding against “urgent customer pain points,” including viral ‘disinformation’ and deep fakes.
The AI can be programmed by the government to “comprehend” probable social media narratives before they exert an influence on behaviors. The Nebula Social solution, as outlined by the company, aids customers in managing risks associated with AI-generated media, such as smear campaigns. Furthermore, it autonomously generates swift, pertinent content to counteract such malicious attacks.
“Government agencies and enterprises alike have an urgent need to manage a plethora of risks and opportunities posed by AI-generated synthetic media.” Bhuyan said.
“Companies are already experiencing significant economic damage caused by the spread of AI-generated viral disinformation and deep fakes manufactured by competitors, disgruntled employees, and other types of adversaries. We believe that the market for AI that can predict and neutralize malign AI-generated synthetic media is about to explode,” he added.
There are important instances where the U.S. government partnered with Big Tech to shut down social media narratives under the rubric of “disinformation” that not only turned out to be true, but held immense ramifications for democracy.
51 former intelligence community officials averred that the Hunter Biden laptop reports that surfaced prior to the 2020 election was probable ‘Russian disinformation,’ despite the Federal Bureau of Investigation possessing a copy of one of Biden’s laptops. The IC community specifically signed off on the known false narrative specifically to aid Joe Biden for his debate preparation against then-President Donald Trump.
As the House Judiciary Committee pointed out, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency Mike Morell “explained that the Biden campaign helped to strategize about the public release of the statement. Morell further explained that one of his two goals in releasing the statement was to help then-Vice President Biden in the debate and to assist him in winning the election.”
Based on Morell’s testimony, it is “apparent that the Biden campaign played an active role in the origins of the public statement, which had the effect of helping to suppress the Hunter Biden story and preventing American citizens from making a fully informed decision during the 2020 presidential election,” the committee noted.
There are other examples. During the Covid-19 pandemic response when civil liberties were curtailed, social media outlets collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to police for alleged “misinformation.” Meta CEO admitted in public interviews and in testimony before Congress that the CDC asked Facebook to censor information that turned out to be true.
Zuckerberg said the “establishment” encouraged him to censor counter-narratives, saying they “asked for a bunch of things to be censored that, in retrospect, ended up being more debatable or true.”
Furthermore, the U.S. government under the auspices of preserving “democracy” shut down complaints about the 2020 election, despite allowing top Democrats to complain about elections, including the 2000 election, 2004 election, and even the 2016 election.
The U.S. government should not be allowed to interfere with Americans’ free speech on social media. There cannot be “democracy” without criticism of the government. The use of Artificial Intelligence to police citizens’ speech about the government represents an existential threat to the foundations of a free country. There must be a wall of separation imposed between the government and public information before it is too late.