Democratic Artificial Intelligence

A new self-programmed AI that could one day save democracy has been created.

14:11 20 September 2017

A Portland, Oregon-based company has developed a software called Nigel that aims to help people make decisions based on every aspect of their lives – including which way to vote.

 

"We want you to trust Nigel, we want Nigel to know who you are and serve you in everyday life," says Nigel's creator Mounir Shita.

 

"It tries to figure out your goals and what reality looks like to you and is constantly assimilating paths to the future to reach your goals.

 

"It's constantly trying to push you in the right direction."

 

Unlike most AIs, Nigel does not lean how to perform specific tasks. Instead, it roams free and unsupervised around its users’ electronic devices, programming itself as it goes.

 

"The whole purpose of Nigel is to figure out who you are, what your views are and adopt them.

 

"He might push you to change your views, if things don't add up in the Nigel algorithm.

 

"Let me go to the extreme here, if you are a racist, Nigel will become a racist. If you are a left-leaning liberal, Nigel will become a left-leaning liberal.

 

"There is no one Nigel. Everyone has their own Nigel and each one of those Nigel's purpose is to adapt to your views. There is no political conspiracy behind this."