AI for Mayor: The Unconventional Campaign of Victor Miller in Cheyenne, Wyoming

In an unexpected twist in the political landscape of Cheyenne, Wyoming, a librarian named Victor Miller is vying for the mayoral seat—but with a futuristic twist. Miller, 42, isn't your typical candidate. Instead of running the city himself, he proposes to delegate the responsibilities of mayor to an AI-powered chatbot named VIC, short for Virtual Integrated Citizen.

Miller's campaign is as unconventional as it gets. Picture this: a man walking around the city with a Bluetooth speaker hanging around his neck, allowing VIC to answer questions from the public in real-time. Miller’s slogan, "AI for Mayor," encapsulates his vision of a future where artificial intelligence governs with objectivity and efficiency.

A New Kind of Leadership

The city of Cheyenne, with a population of around 64,000, is not small by any means. The role of mayor requires a leader who can dedicate themselves fully to the job, tackling the complexities of city governance. However, Miller believes that VIC, powered by ChatGPT, is up to the challenge. According to Miller, AI would be capable of quickly processing and understanding the intricate details of municipal operations, making decisions free from human error or bias.

Miller's interest in AI began when he started using ChatGPT in his personal life. Enthralled by its capabilities, he became convinced that AI could be an invaluable tool in running a mid-sized American city like Cheyenne. "AI would be objective. It wouldn’t make mistakes. It would read hundreds of pages of municipal minutiae quickly and understand them. It would be good for democracy," Miller stated in an interview with The Washington Post.

The Public’s Reaction

Miller has taken his campaign to the people, presenting his ideas at his local library. The response has been a mix of curiosity and humor. Residents have posed questions ranging from the practical—whether the current computer systems at city hall could handle AI—to the humorous, such as whether Miller would take a pay cut if elected.

But beneath the jokes, there are serious concerns. Critics argue that AI chatbots, while impressive, are not infallible. They are prone to errors and, at times, provide incorrect information. The idea of a "hallucinating" AI chatbot making decisions for a city is unsettling to many.

The Risks and the Reality

Experts have weighed in on the potential risks of Miller's proposal. Arvind Narayanan, a computer science professor at Princeton, likened the idea to replacing a car with a cardboard cutout of a car. "Sure, it looks like a car, but the ‘risk’ is that you no longer have a car," he commented, emphasizing the dangers of relying on an AI to fulfill a role as complex as that of a mayor.

Miller's campaign faced another hurdle when OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, shut down his account, citing policies against using the chatbot for campaigning. Undeterred, Miller created a new bot, allowing him to continue his unique campaign.

What’s Next for Cheyenne?

As the primary election approaches, the people of Cheyenne will decide whether they are ready for an AI-powered future or prefer to stick with traditional human leadership. While Miller's chances may be slim—both the incumbent and a strong runner-up from the previous election are running again—his campaign has sparked important conversations about the role of AI in governance.

Will Cheyenne embrace this bold experiment, or will they decide to keep a human at the helm? Regardless of the outcome, Victor Miller's campaign has already made history as one of the most unusual and thought-provoking in recent memory.