WJC's Technology and Human Rights Institute Highlights AI Risks at UN Forum

Executive Director of WJC's Institute for Technology and Human Rights, Yfat Barak-Cheney, spoke at the UN in Geneva during the 3rd Global Dialogue on AI - "AI for #OneHumanity - Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence" hosted by the UN Alliance of Civilizations. As part of the panel on AI and Media in the Information Age: Combatting AI-Driven Disinformation, Misinformation, and Hate Speech, Barak-Cheney flagged the challenges AI poses to hate speech and antisemitism and presented the case study of Holocaust Denial and Distortion.

Referring to the research by UNESCO and the World Jewish Congress AI and the Holocaust: Rewriting History? she emphasized that when AI can generate hallucinated events like the ‘Holocaust by drowning,’ or fabricate survivor testimony, it not just questions the Holocaust but leads to the liar’s dividend — the idea that if anything can be faked, then even truth is suspect." This erosion of trust affects all historical memory — and all communities at risk.”

Barak-Cheney also noted positive aspects of AI, through the Human vs AI project, where WJC compared how two leading AI models — ChatGPT and Claude — analyze real antisemitic hate speech, drawn from actual social media experiences of Jewish users. "In this research we learned that the chatbots identified correctly antisemitic comments, including recognizing many antisemitic tropes — even subtle ones. This shows the vast potential to use Generative AI to moderate hateful speech online. 

When asked about best practices the WJC is working on, Barak-Cheney presented search redirect interventions with Meta and TikTok which intend to promote verified sources on the platforms on the Holocaust. "Supporting AI literacy for everyone - from children to adults is key to ensuring AI continues to serve all humanity" she concluded.