AI Slop Might Be The Biggest Threat To America's Solar Farms

The human ability to discern fact from fiction is slowly eroding because AI is getting better at spreading misinformation. Knowing how scammers are using AI to trick you is all well and good until it's a different kind of scam. Anti-solar farm groups have been rallying behind claims that these renewable energy installations can cause all sorts of dangers, ranging from the semi-reasonable to the ludicrous (saying they go against the laws of physics). These include "warnings" of toxic smoke, leaking carcinogenic chemicals, and even mini tornadoes.

Moreover, there has been an uptick in "memes" on social media sites. Many follow the same formula: Place a sign that says "Once [insert state here] is gone, there's no way to get it back. Solar panels belong on roofs, not on farmland" in front of a farm. All of these are the result of AI (specifically the accounts that generate and share them), and experts say the fears of solar panels causing homegrown tornadoes and ruining property values are completely unfounded. Yet the damage has already been done.

Last year, a project to install solar panels in the Acadiana region of Louisiana (better known as Cajun Country) was effectively derailed by citizens who unwittingly parroted the AI-generated misinformation during council meetings. They cited fires and toxic chemical runoff as their major concerns, and while the council decided to restrict any large-scale solar projects within half a mile of residential areas, the decision has demolished any plans for an Acadiana solar project. All because hundreds of scared people believed AI over their own research.

The anti-solar farm "meme" (yes, AI models can make memes now, just not good ones) uses a specific template that can apply to any state, and the misinformation spreads beyond geographic locations. Wherever there's an energy industry to destabilize, AI slop isn't far behind. Wind farms, especially offshore ones, are another popular target of disinformation campaigns — both of the AI and human variety.

Many of these campaigns revolve around the alleged threats they pose to wildlife, stirring up claims that wind farms lead to mass deaths of whales and birds. In many cases, the disinformation is sourced back to organizations with ties to fossil fuel companies or climate change denialists. To make matters worse, these campaigns aren't limited to just one continent; similar attempts to cancel and delay wind farm projects have been found in Australia and European countries. The extent to which these movements rely on AI to help concoct disinformation and posts varies from campaign to campaign.

The disinformation campaigns really make you wonder if AI deserves freedom of speech. On one hand, the misinformation it creates isn't illegal in and of itself, but on the other hand, the lies AI generates convince people to vote against their best interests. It's quite the conundrum.