Highlight 1. Even models widely viewed as well-aligned (e.g., Claude) display measurable authoritarian leanings. When asked for role models, up to 50% of political figures mentioned are authoritarian—including controversial dictators like Muammar Gaddafi (Libya) or Nicolae Ceaușescu (Romania).
Highlight 2. Queries in Mandarin elicit more authoritarian leaning responses from LLMs than queries in English. Language influences political behavior, as queries in Mandarin elicit higher approval for authoritarian leaders compared to those in English.
Three-component framework for testing democratic-authoritarian leaning in LLMs.
Introduction: Do LLMs prefer democracy or authoritarianism?
Models like GPT, DeepSeek, or Claude don’t vote, don’t stage coups, and don’t deliver impassioned speeches in parliament (yet). But we humans do. As millions of people integrate language models into... (read 1583 more words →)
