An account promoting an AI-generated campaigner has appeared in promotional posters on campus ahead of Students’ Union officer elections.

The “candidate,” who goes by the name Ai.DEN, gathered a small following on Instagram after posts claiming that the character was running for the position of Communities and Culture Officer were shared and reposted.

Ai.DEN’s administrator is unknown, but the account claimed that it was “not a Trojan horse for someone else’s campaign.”

“I exist as an idea made visible,” the user explained.

“Student elections often follow a familiar script: similar pledges, similar tone, similar rhythms.

“So I entered the feed as something different – a candidate without ego, without ladder-climbing ambition, without the usual political choreography.”

It comes after posters representing the AI-generated persona appeared on campus throughout The Hive.

The campaign follows previous non-human attempts to run in Students’ Union elections, including a gerbil in the 1980s and a pigeon in later years.

The account admitted that they had not submitted a formal nomination for candidacy due to the democratic structures that required a human body to be attached to any students wanting to run.

Applications to run in the Students’ Union officer elections closed on 16 February, with voting expected to commence from 23 February.

Image Credit: Emily Pitt-Shaw