San Francisco politics toys with AI
Close
Search for:
Search
Ways to Give to Mission Local
Government
Housing
Food
Trouble
Business
Data Projects
Joe Eskenazi
Community
The Arts
Events
Snaps from Readers
News Archive
News by Neighborhood<br>Bayview-Hunters Point
The Mission
The Richmond
The Sunset
Tenderloin
About Us
Our Board
Our Donors
Careers at Mission Local
Internships
Advertising
Corrections
Editorial ethics
Noticias en Español
中文
Close
Ways to Give to Mission Local
Government
Housing
Food
Trouble
Business
Data Projects
Joe Eskenazi
Community
The Arts
Events
Snaps from Readers
News Archive
News by Neighborhood<br>Bayview-Hunters Point
The Mission
The Richmond
The Sunset
Tenderloin
About Us
Our Board
Our Donors
Careers at Mission Local
Internships
Advertising
Corrections
Editorial ethics
Noticias en Español
中文
Skip to content
Open Search
Search for:
Search
Donate
Menu
Sign In
San Francisco’s political experiment with the technology has only just begun. But it’s already permeating civic discourse. Illustration created by Brandon Pho.
html,body{height:100%;margin:0}body{display:flex;align-items:center;justify-content:center;background:#f5f5f5;color:#555;font:14px Arial,sans-serif}Audio player will appear shortly.(function(){var f=frameElement,s=f&&f.getAttribute("data-ml-everlit-src");function l(){if(!f||!s||f.hasAttribute("src"))return;var r=parent.document.documentElement;if(r.classList.contains("ml-audio-arm-control"))return;f.setAttribute("src",s);f.removeAttribute("srcdoc");f.removeAttribute("data-ml-everlit-src")}if(parent.document.readyState==="complete")setTimeout(l,1500);else parent.addEventListener("load",function(){setTimeout(l,1500)},{once:true})}());" title="Everlit Audio Player" width="100%" height="136px" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen>
The dialog is in Mandarin, and unmistakably AI-generated. A mom juggles groceries in the kitchen with tough news: Her son is leaving San Francisco. But why? New girlfriend? No, mom: New wealth tax.
“The company doesn’t want to stay in California anymore,” says the AI-generated son, hauling his boxes into an AI-generated moving truck.
The video, released in May, is the first AI-generated ad produced by Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan’s political dark-money group, Garry’s List.
Under the banner of “Garry’s List Studios,” the ad discloses its use of AI and lists its top funders as Tan, billionaire Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen and Govern for California, another political group that’s friendly with tech executives.
In May, Garry’s List spent $51,000 on TV ad buys for AI videos, according to a spokesperson and financial disclosures.
The initial video urged residents to vote “No” on Prop. D, the “overpaid CEO tax” shot down by 53 percent of city voters in the June primary. Another AI video, posted to Instagram later that month, did the same, but aimed at Spanish speakers.
A third video endorsed Phoebe Maffei for San Francisco Superior Court Judge (she won with more than 57 percent of the vote). The fourth and most recent video, also posted to Instagram, is an AI-generated promo for Garry’s List itself, vowing to decipher political issues for voters to the tune of an upbeat pop song.
Tan, the venture capitalist who amassed a tech-friendly political following for bashing progressives for years, said he’s exploring further use of the tool.
“We are currently doing the research to determine which races we will engage in this November, and how,” said Sam Singer, Tan’s spokesman, in a statement.
“With this new tool, Garry’s List takes documents and proceedings that are technically public but nearly impossible for most people to follow and turns them into ads that make the issues not just accessible but understandable, and we hold ourselves to that same standard in how we communicate.”
Tan’s allies are encouraged.
“Short-form content is in,” said Griffin Lee, an organizer with ConnectedSF who aligns with Tan on many issues. “These videos have the best shot at engaging more Gen-Z and millennials.”
Tan’s opponents are bemused.
“It’s great. Please keep doing it,” said progressive San Francisco political consultant Daniel Anderson. “It seems like there are two things people love: Political ads and AI slop. I can’t imagine people will be moved on either front by these ridiculous videos. As far as I’m concerned — go for it, Garry’s List. Go nuts.”
You follow tech in San Francisco . So do we.
Pick at least one newsletter to subscribe.
Sign up free
San Francisco’s political experiment with AI is just beginning. But it’s already permeating civic discourse. In this year’s congressional race to succeed Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Scott Wiener is marketing a Claude-powered AI chatbot designed to mock his opponent, Connie Chan, over her stances on housing and transit.
On social media, dueling factions...