Schiff and Khanna Revive AI Ads Act to Ban Deceptive Political Deepfakes in Federal Campaigns

Adam Schiff Revives AI Ads Act to Ban Deceptive Political Deepfakes: 'We Cannot Allow AI to Further Blur

Schiff, Khanna Reintroduce AI Ads Act to Target Election Deepfakes In a post on X, Schiff warned that AI-generated political advertisements using a candidate's voice or likeness to distort their positions threaten the integrity of elections. "Fraudulent AI-generated political ads that use the voice or likeness of a candidate to misrepresent their position on issues pose a serious threat to our democracy that should concern Americans regardless of their political party," Schiff wrote. He added, "We cannot allow AI to further blur the line between fact and fiction in political campaigns -- that's why I'm fighting to pass my AI Ads Act." Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) joined Schiff in reintroducing the legislation, which was first introduced during the 118th Congress. What the AI Ads Act Would Do According to a press release, the bill would expand existing federal prohibitions on fraudulent political misrepresentation to explicitly cover content generated in whole or in part by AI. The legislation would also broaden restrictions on individuals falsely claiming to represent candidates, political committees or political organizations and eliminate the requirement that deceptive communications must be "damaging" to violate the law. Khanna said AI has the potential to reshape society but should not be used to deceive voters. "AI will transform our lives and our society in many ways, but it can't be used to mislead voters or undermine our democracy," Khanna said. "I'm proud to lead the AI Ads Act with Senator Schiff to ban AI-generated content that deceives the public about candidates or elections." The proposal has received backing from advocacy groups including Common Cause, Public Citizen, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Campaign Legal Center and Protect Democracy, which argue the measure would help safeguard federal elections from increasingly sophisticated AI-generated political deepfakes. Mark Cuban, OpenAI Highlight AI Election Risks Mark Cuban warned in January that the 2026 election could become the first "AI-driven election season," saying algorithms may play an increasingly influential role in shaping public opinion. In June, OpenAI said it had disrupted alleged Chinese influence operations that used ChatGPT to generate social media posts intended to sway U.S. conversations on tariffs, AI and data centers. Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Photo courtesy: Shutterstock Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs To add Benzinga News as your preferred source on Google, click here.

California Dems target AI campaign ads after Spencer Pratt and Steve Hilton's viral political attacks

Two California Democrats have have called on Congress to slam the brakes on Hollywood-style AI campaign ads just as they become the norm for political campaigns. US Sen. Adam Schiff and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Fremont) on Monday reintroduced the "AI Ads Act," which is seeking to ban the fraudulent use of artificial intelligence to impersonate political candidates or committees in federal campaigns as AI-generated election content becomes more sophisticated. The push comes just days after Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton unveiled a pair of AI-generated campaign ads attacking Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic nominee Xavier Becerra. One featured a riff on the "Gladiator" franchise while the other pit Hilton against a "machine" supposedly representing Democratic Party's grip on California politics. Those videos followed a string of viral AI videos created by the campaign of former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt. The ex-reality TV villain turned candidate was buoyed by the work of Los Angeles director Charles Curran, whose "Pratt Man" video riffed on the "Batman" franchise and led to millions of views. Schiff, who originally introduced the legislation while serving in the House of Representatives, said the issue is non-partisan even if Republicans seem to have wielded AI-driven campaign videos to greater effect. "AI-generated fraudulent advertising which uses the likeness or voices of candidates to misrepresent their positions, campaigns, or causes, or otherwise misrepresents a candidate's point of view is not only wrong -- it poses a serious threat to our democracy that should concern all Americans regardless of their party," Schiff said. Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters The bill would amend the Federal Election Campaign Act to explicitly prohibit fraudulent misrepresentation through content generated wholly or partly by artificial intelligence. It would also broaden existing federal prohibitions by applying them to anyone falsely claiming to represent a candidate or political organization -- and eliminate the requirement that a misrepresentation be shown to be "damaging" before enforcement could occur. The proposal closely tracks bipartisan recommendations issued by the Federal Election Commission in 2022 to modernize campaign fraud laws. Khanna, a likely presidential candidate in 2028, said artificial intelligence should not be "used to mislead voters or undermine our democracy." Unlike many of the "deepfake" concerns driving lawmakers, the Hilton and Pratt videos relied on clearly fictional, stylized animation rather than realistic fabricated footage designed to appear authentic. The AI Ads Act targets fraudulent impersonation of candidates or political organizations, including AI-generated content used to deceive voters or solicit campaign donations under false pretenses, rather than banning AI-generated political advertising altogether. The legislation is backed by Common Cause, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Campaign Legal Center, Protect Democracy and Public Citizen. More than 30 states have adopted laws addressing deceptive AI-generated election content, according to supporters of the measure, but Congress has yet to establish comparable nationwide standards for federal campaigns. The bill's prospects remain uncertain in a closely divided Congress, where lawmakers have repeatedly struggled to agree on broader AI regulations despite bipartisan concerns over the technology's growing role in elections.