President Joe Biden's campaign and Democratic candidates are engaged in a competitive race with Republicans to harness the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), a technology that could have a profound impact on American elections and democracy. After their experience of being outmaneuvered by Donald Trump on social media during the 2016 election, Democrats are now cautiously embracing AI tools while remaining mindful of the risks associated with disinformation. However, concerns are growing among experts about how AI's abilities to generate false content, manipulate images and videos, and spread misinformation could threaten voter suppression, deception, and incitement to violence. The Biden administration is attempting to shape AI regulation through executive actions, but Democrats agree that legislation from Congress is necessary to establish safeguards against AI abuses. While both parties have used AI for data collection and analysis in previous campaigns, recent developments in supercharged generative AI have granted candidates and consultants unprecedented capabilities in text and image generation, voice cloning, and video creation. This has intensified the need for guidelines and oversight to prevent AI from being exploited for deceptive purposes. Campaigns and consultants have generally avoided detailed discussions about their AI strategies, but it is known that the Biden campaign is using AI for audience modeling, email drafting, content generation, data analysis, and donor communication.

Strict rules are in place to ensure ethical AI use and prevent the spread of disinformation and deepfake content. The Democratic National Committee has also integrated AI into its operations, utilizing Google AI for various tasks that aid voter identification and data interpretation. Progressive groups and some Democratic candidates have been more active in experimenting with AI, aiming to leverage its capabilities while ensuring responsible deployment. However, there are concerns that caution and fear are impeding balanced conversations and hindering progress in this domain. Among political figures, Congressman Adam Schiff is one of the few who openly acknowledges using AI in his campaign, employing it to enhance efficiency and automate fundraising emails. Despite the potential benefits, all campaigns face the challenge of discussing AI without being implicated in the negative use of deceptive AI technologies.