Imran Khan uses AI-crafted speech to lure voters from prison

Jailed former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has delivered a speech using an audio clip generated through artificial intelligence (AI) to address a virtual rally – the first event of its kind in the South Asian country.The audio clip, marred by internet disruptions, was played over the AI-generated image which appears to be speaking, during an internet rally of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party. It drew more than 1.4 million views on YouTube and was attended live by tens of thousands on other social media platforms. "Our party is not allowed to hold public rallies," Khan said in the clip, urging supporters to turn out in large numbers at general elections set for Feb 8. "Our people are being kidnapped and their families are being harassed. "Khan's speech was generated from a written version he had approved from prison, said officials of his party, which staged the event because it faces a state-backed crackdown on physical gatherings, while its leader is blacked out of media.

Jailed since he was convicted and sentenced to three years on graft charges on Aug. 5, Khan is embroiled in dozens of court cases, with some trials held in prison behind closed doors, which legal experts say infringes his right to fair proceedings. A political crisis has swirled around the 71-year-old former cricket star since his ouster last year as prime minister in a vote of confidence in parliament. The party crackdown followed a May assault on military sites by supporters protesting his brief arrest.

Khan won the last general election in 2018, a victory his opponents say was achieved with help from the military, which often plays an outsized role in making or breaking governments in Pakistan. Khan denies the allegations and says the cases against him are a ploy by the government and the powerful military to keep him and his party out of the February elections. On 9 May 2023, Khan was arrested on corruption charges at the Islamabad High Court by paramilitary troops who smashed their way into the courthouse. Protests broke out throughout Pakistan resulting in the arrest of several thousands of Khan's supporters along with military installations being ransacked. After his release, he blamed the Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir for his arrest. The army responded by terming 9 May as "Black Day", with Minister of MoPD Ahsan Iqbal terming it as Pakistan's 9/11. He was sentenced to a three-year jail term on 5 August 2023 and was subsequently arrested for the second time