TL;DR:
- Taiwan faces ongoing threats to its information streams from China, both physically and virtually.
- Recent incidents include the severing of communication cables and coordinated messaging campaigns.
- Taiwanese civil society has taken proactive measures to combat disinformation, such as the creation of Cofacts.
- Generative AI tools have emerged as a powerful solution, enabling the clarification of disinformation and adding context.
- These AI tools empower citizen-led initiatives and maintain their independence from government control.
- The U.S. intelligence community is also exploring the potential of generative AI for productivity.
- Concerns arise about the accessibility of generative AI to smaller nations and non-state actors.
Main AI News:
As the world watches with bated breath for the possibility of a military showdown between China and Taiwan before 2027, Taiwan finds itself facing a subtle yet relentless assault on its information streams. This assault, waged by China, takes the form of physical and virtual attacks, jeopardizing the island’s vital communications infrastructure. In response, Taiwan has been diligently crafting new strategies and tools to fend off these threats.
One glaring incident occurred in April when a Chinese fishing vessel, closely followed by a cargo ship, inadvertently severed the communication cables linking Taiwan’s Matsu islands to the mainland. This act of sabotage, or perhaps mere clumsiness, has recurred a staggering 27 times in the past five years, leading Taiwan to suspect foul play. Such attacks on commercial and public telecommunications have become commonplace among adversarial nations, reminiscent of Russia’s assault on the U.S.-based satellite communications company, Viasat, shortly before launching its renewed aggression in Ukraine.
In the face of these challenges, Taiwan has seized the opportunity to empower its citizens with the knowledge to navigate these Chinese-induced service disruptions. Audrey Tang, Taiwan’s Minister of Digital Affairs, explained during the Special Competitive Studies Project Summit in Washington, D.C., how they leveraged this adversity. “We took that as a chance to not just teach people about microwave and satellite communications backup, but we also saw a lot of civil society start learning about how to set up emergency communications when the bandwidth is limited.”
However, the threat extends beyond physical attacks on infrastructure. Various Chinese-backed entities consistently target Taiwanese citizens with coordinated messaging and influence campaigns. A 2019 report by cybersecurity company Record Future revealed that the Chinese government employs up to half a million individuals to shape opinions on social media platforms, both domestically and internationally.
With a pivotal presidential election on the horizon in January, Tang anticipates an escalation of China’s efforts to manipulate Taiwanese civilians. To counter this, Taiwanese civil society has established innovative organizations. Cofacts, for instance, enables users to forward suspicious messages to a chatbot. Human editors assess these messages, log them into a database, and provide users with a verdict. Despite their commendable efforts, the number of volunteers remains dwarfed by China’s vast resources. Tang acknowledges this disparity, stating, “The people who actually engage in foreign interference nowadays, coordinated with cyber attacks, have a lot of resources.”
Enter generative AI tools, exemplified by large language models like ChatGPT. Tang notes the significance of these tools, saying, “This year, because generative AI is so adaptable, they fine-tuned a language module that can clarify disinformation, adding context and more. So, we’re no longer outnumbered.” Notably, these tools allow citizen-led initiatives to maintain their independence from government control, preserving their credibility. Tang emphasizes that these AI solutions require no specialized hardware or extensive resources, making them accessible for volunteers in the social sector, thus preventing capture by state or capitalist interests.
The United States intelligence community is also exploring the potential of generative artificial intelligence to enhance productivity. Avril Haines, Director of National Intelligence, mentioned the “Unity program,” designed to extract and scale the best practices in artificial intelligence. However, Haines acknowledges that the United States has much to learn about the development ecosystem of such tools in the private sector and how adversaries might employ generative AI for their own attacks.
One looming concern is the sheer power of generative AI, which could enable small nations and non-state actors to rival larger, more predictable adversaries like China. Haines warns, “The state actors we typically focus on will undoubtedly pose a threat, but if you have something that’s cheap and readily available, you might see other state actors, traditionally not engaged in such threats, becoming more active simply because it’s accessible to them.”
Conclusion:
Taiwan’s strategic use of generative AI to counter Chinese disinformation underscores the importance of innovative solutions in the evolving information warfare landscape. This development signifies a growing market demand for AI-powered tools that can combat disinformation and safeguard information integrity on a global scale. Businesses and governments should invest in AI solutions to address similar challenges in the modern era of information warfare.
