Overview
- The Wiener campaign launched an AI chatbot that imitated Connie Chan to portray her as reflexively opposed to housing and transit, then removed the site and said the ads would come down after criticism.
- Wiener first defended the tool as a labeled parody and accused critics of manufacturing controversy, then apologized and announced the removal on Friday following pressure from Pelosi and allied Democrats.
- Chan’s campaign and local Democratic groups called the chatbot sexist and racist, saying it put words in a woman of color’s mouth and damaged trust in political speech.
- Reporting shows Wiener’s team used Anthropic’s Claude to build the bot and that an Anthropic‑backed PAC has signaled major support for Wiener, while the campaign spent about $20,000 on billboards promoting the site.
- The episode has shifted the race to questions about AI ethics, representation and industry influence and could prompt closer scrutiny of AI use and ad transparency in future campaigns.