Surveys and polls help societies understand what people think about issues in politics, health, education and much more. But fewer people these days tend to respond, so pollsters have to reach out more widely, which raises cost considerably. One survey provider prices a 10 minute survey of 1,000 people in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Could AI models stand in for hundreds or thousands of people, emulating the range of answers humans would provide? This practice, known as synthetic surveys or silicon sampling, is already happening, and it’s far less expensive. But are the results trustworthy?
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