Swedish PM under fire for AI use: 'We didn't vote for ChatGPT'

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has drawn criticism after revealing his regular use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, including ChatGPT and the French service LeChat, to seek “second opinions” in his official duties. Kristersson, who leads Sweden’s centre-right coalition government, told the Swedish business newspaper Dagens industri that he utilizes AI “quite often,” particularly to gauge “what others have done” and to consider alternative viewpoints. He also noted that his colleagues employ AI in their daily work.

This admission has sparked concerns among tech experts and led to sharp criticism from the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, which accused the Prime Minister of succumbing to “the oligarchs’ AI psychosis” in an editorial.

Simone Fischer-Hübner, a computer science researcher at Karlstad University, cautioned against the use of AI tools like ChatGPT with sensitive information, emphasizing the need for extreme care. Responding to the criticism, Tom Samuelsson, Kristersson’s spokesperson, clarified that the Prime Minister’s use of AI does not involve security-sensitive data. He stated that the tools are employed “more as a ballpark” reference.

However, Virginia Dignum, a professor of responsible artificial intelligence at Umeå University, raised fundamental questions about AI’s capacity to offer meaningful political insights. She argued that AI systems primarily reflect the biases and views of their creators, rather than generating independent thought. Dignum warned of a “slippery slope,” suggesting that increased reliance on AI for seemingly simple tasks could foster overconfidence in the system. Speaking to the Dagens Nyheter newspaper, she stressed the imperative for guaranteed reliability, asserting, “We didn’t vote for ChatGPT.”