MICROSOFT CORPORATION | AI impact on misinformation and disinformation at Microsoft Corporation

Status
21.20% votes in favour
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Proposal number
13
Resolution details
Company ticker
MSFT
Lead filer
Arjuna Capital
Resolution ask
Report on or disclose
ESG theme
  • Social
ESG sub-theme
  • Digital rights
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Technology
Company HQ country
United States
Resolved clause
Resolved, Shareholders request the Board issue a report, at reasonable cost, omitting proprietary or legally privileged
information, to be published within one year of the Annual Meeting and updated annually thereafter, assessing the risks
to the Company’s operations and finances as well as risks to public welfare presented by the company’s role in
facilitating misinformation and disinformation disseminated or generated via artificial intelligence, and what steps, if
any, the company plans to remediate those harms, and the effectiveness of such efforts.
Whereas clause
Whereas, There is widespread concern that generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) — as exemplified by Microsoft’s
ChatGPT — may dramatically increase misinformation and disinformation globally, posing serious threats to democracy
and democratic principles.
“I’m particularly worried that these models could be used for large-scale disinformation,” said Sam Altman, CEO of
OpenAI, the company that developed ChatGPT along with Microsoft.1
Microsoft has reportedly invested over 13 billion dollars in OpenAI, and has integrated ChatGPT in its Bing search engine
and other products. ChatGPT is reportedly the fastest-growing consumer application in history.2
The Washington Post said ChatGPT users “have posted numerous examples of the tools fumbling basic factual questions
or even fabricating falsehoods, complete with realistic details and fake citations.”3 The Guardian reported that “ChatGPT
is making up fake Guardian articles.”4 Microsoft itself states: “Bing will sometimes misrepresent the information it finds,
and you may see responses that sound convincing but are incomplete, inaccurate, or inappropriate.”5 Tests by
NewsGuard found ChatGPT technology could be the most powerful tool in widely spreading misinformation.6
Generative AI’s disinformation may pose serious risks to democracy by manipulating public opinion, undermining
institutional trust, and swaying elections. In January, Eurasia Group ranked generative AI as the third highest political risk
confronting the world, warning new technologies “will be a gift to autocrats bent on undermining democracy abroad
and stifling dissent at home.”7 2024 will be a critical year for elections, with a United States presidential election and
significant Senate and House races.8 Presidential elections will also be held in Russia and Ukraine.9
Shareholders are concerned that ChatGPT presents Microsoft with significant legal, financial and reputational risk. Many
legal experts believe technology companies’ liability shield provided under Section 230 of the Communications Decency
Act may not apply to content generated by ChatGPT. Senator Wyden, who wrote the law, says Section 230 “has nothing
to do with protecting companies from the consequences of their own actions and products.”10 Experts are also debating
how the principles of defamation law apply to AI-generated falsehoods, which open the company up to substantial
litigation risk.11 ChatGPT is already running afoul of regulators, with current investigations by European and Canadian
data protection authorities.12
In March, Microsoft eliminated its entire AI ethics and society team. Employees expressed concern that this leaves
Microsoft without a dedicated team to ensure its AI principles are closely tied to product design.13
Supporting statement
1 https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/20/openai-ceo-sam-altman-says-hes-a-little-bit-scared-of-ai.html 2 https://www.cnbc.com/2023/04/08/microsofts-complex-bet-on-openai-brings-potential-and-uncertainty.html 3 https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/04/05/chatgpt-lies/ 4 https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/apr/06/ai-chatgpt-guardian-technology-risks-fake-article 5 https://www.bing.com/new#faq 6 https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/08/technology/ai-chatbots-disinformation.html 7 https://www.eurasiagroup.net/issues/top-risks-2023 8 https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_Congress_elections,_2024 9 https://www.ft.com/content/c6972372-a02a-4b42-abba-3d98296e08f3 10 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/03/17/ai-chatbots-wont-enjoy-techs-legal-shield-section-230-authors-say/ 11 https://www.wsj.com/articles/chatgpt-libeled-me-can-i-sue-defamation-law-artificial-intelligence-cartoonist-court-lawyers-technology-14086034 12 https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/04/25/1072177/a-cambridge-analytica-style-scandal-for-ai-iscoming/?truid=&utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=&utm_content=05-03-
2023&mc_cid=1fb19f5898&mc_eid=5c3e4c2150 13 https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/13/23638823/microsoft-ethics-society-team-responsible-ai-layoffs

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