Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, recently stated that someone had used ChatGPT to falsely present their CEO, Changpeng Zhao, as an official in the Chinese Communist Party. This has raised concerns among experts who fear that developments in artificial intelligence could be used to create fake news stories and manipulate public opinion.
Simple Fact-Checking is Key
Reports suggest that an undisclosed individual or entity used ChatGPT to make false claims about Zhao’s links to the Communist Party and the state-owned China National Petroleum Corporation. Binance’s CSO, Patrick Hillmann, attempted to replicate the query but was unable to find any evidence corroborating the claims. He insists that the CEO has no connections to the Chinese government and that the language model’s suggestion that Zhao was part of the corporation during high school is «ludicrous.»
«It is especially sad to see this type of misinformation being shared by a few people in power when it would have been debunked with even the most basic level of fact-checking,» Hillman said.
While AI has made vast improvements to various industries, experts have warned of potential dangers. Professor Charlie Beckett, the director of an AI program at the London School of Economics and a former journalist at the BBC, believes that human editing and fact-checking should remain essential practices in the journalism industry.
Another Rumor Debunked
Not only was Zhao falsely accused of having connections to the Chinese Communist Party, but a recent Bloomberg article also claimed that he had a net worth of over $28B. However, Zhao has debunked this claim and says that his net worth is nowhere near that amount. He also refuted the notion that he saw the now-bankrupt FTX as a rival. Instead, he welcomes new exchanges that run their businesses properly.
