Sonja Solomun on the risks of autonomous AI and climate disinformation | Canada's National Observer
February 27, 2026 |聽Sonja Solomun and her co-author Chris Russill write in Canada鈥檚 National Observer about how autonomous AI agents could transform the landscape of climate disinformation. Using a recent case in which an AI agent launched a reputational attack on an open-source developer, they argue that emerging AI systems can now generate and spread conspiratorial narratives without clear human direction or accountability. Solomun and Russill warn that this shift could accelerate harassment and misinformation targeting climate scientists and policymakers, while eroding the traceability that has traditionally allowed disinformation campaigns to be linked to specific actors. They conclude that policymakers will need to rethink AI governance, including whether autonomous agents operating in public spaces should be required to identify themselves as non-human.
