Online discourse faces challenges in facilitating substantive and productive political conversations. Recent technologies have explored the potential of generative AI to promote civil discourse, encourage the development of mutual understanding in a discussion, produce . . .

by Lily L. Tsai, Alex Pentland, Alia Braley, Nuole Chen, José Ramón Enríquez, and Anka Reuel

Abstract: Online discourse faces challenges in facilitating substantive and productive political conversations. Recent technologies have explored the potential of generative AI to promote civil discourse, encourage the development of mutual understanding in a discussion, produce feedback that enables people to converge in their views, and provide usable citizen input on policy questions posed to the public by governments and civil society. In this paper, we present a framework to help policymakers, technologists, and the public assess potential opportunities and risks when incorporating generative AI into online platforms for discussion and deliberation in order to strengthen democratic practices and help democratic governments make more effective and responsive policy decisions.