Rand and his co-authors imagine a future in which a chatbot might be connected to social media accounts as a way to counter conspiracy theories circulating on a platform. Or people might find a chatbot when they search online for information about viral rumors or hoaxes thanks to keyword ads tied to certain conspiracy search terms.

DebunkBot, an AI chatbot designed by researchers to “very effectively persuade” users to stop believing unfounded conspiracy theories, made significant and long-lasting progress at changing people’s convictions, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science.

Researchers highlighted the possibility for AI to refute each person’s specific arguments and to generate personalised content.

Participants, who were “quota matched to the U.S. census on age, gender, race, and ethnicity,” were then randomly assigned to either have a three-round conversation with the AI about their “favored conspiracy belief” or to chat with the AI about a neutral topic.

Relatively brief conversations with AI chatbots trained on “evidence-based counterarguments” reduced the average study participant’s belief in conspiracy theories by about 20% for at least two months, researchers at MIT, Cornell, and the American University found.

Researchers have shown that artificial intelligence (AI) could be a valuable tool in the fight against conspiracy theories, by designing a chatbot that can debunk false information and get people to question their thinking.

The chatbot presented participants with comprehensive answers and detailed arguments, following which they found themselves thinking differently — a change that lasted for several weeks

The study shows AI can change conspiracy theorists' views using counterarguments. This offers a new way to address misinformation.