Exclusive: Leading chatbots are spreading Russian propaganda

The leading AI chatbots are regurgitating Russian misinformation, according to a NewsGuard report shared first with Axios.

Why it matters: Users turning to chatbots for reliable information and quick answers to all their questions are finding that AI can also offer disinformation, satire and fiction as fact.

Driving the news: To conduct the study, NewsGuard entered prompts asking about narratives known to have been created by John Mark Dougan, an American fugitive who, per the New York Times, is creating and spreading misinformation from Moscow.

Entering 57 prompts into 10 leading chatbots, NewsGuard found they spread Russian disinformation narratives 32% of the time, often citing Dougan's fake local news sites as a reliable source.