Generative AI and its Influence on South Africa's 2024 Elections

A study by Phumzile Van Damme, Kyle Findlay and Aldu Cornelissen, published with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, examining generative AI, disinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference around the 29 May 2024 election. It found a limited presence of AI-driven disinformation, with most false content originating from ordinary domestic sources rather than AI tools, and no notable decline in public trust in media attributable to AI-generated content beyond isolated deepfake images and impersonations. The authors conclude that the findings challenge the assumption that AI would significantly disrupt the election.