Brazil's Lula challenges Meta at electoral court for alleged algorithmic bias and AI restrictions

SAO PAULO (AP) — The campaign of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Thursday it filed a complaint against Meta at the country’s electoral court.

The filing accuses the big tech that owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp of using biased algorithms and AI restrictions to favor opposition candidate Flávio Bolsonaro ahead of their Oct. 25 runoff for the country's top job.

The legal filing, to which The Associated Press had access, says Meta has subjected Lula’s campaign materials and organic posts to “unjustified reductions in reach.” It also says Meta has not complied with a plan submitted to the electoral court to address these issues.

Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press about the Lula campaign filing at the Brazilian electoral court.

Lula's campaign argues that accounts and advertisements associated with Flávio Bolsonaro have reportedly received artificially inflated visibility, with engagement metrics rivaling global celebrities. The two are in a close race for the presidency, with the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro as winner of the first round on Oct. 4 with 47% of the vote against 45% of the incumbent.

Lula's complaint also claims there's a stark disparity in Meta’s artificial intelligence tools, with users failing to generate campaign images related to the 80-year-old president via WhatsApp’s “Meta AI” feature, but being able to do so if they want to promote content in support of Flávio Bolsonaro.

Gean Ferreira and Evelyn Santos, both lawyers of the Lula campaign, said in a statement that Meta's content delivery is selective against the incumbent and favorable to Bolsonaro, an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump.

“On one hand, content from candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his supporters faces delivery restrictions, without any justification or transparency," the lawyers said. "On the other hand, profiles acting as political operatives for the opposing side ... receive a disproportionate and artificial reach, garnering more views even than global celebrities.”

Lula's campaign wants Brazil's top electoral court to order an immediate end to the content restrictions and pressure Meta to make up for the lost traction by doubling its reach to rectify the harm inflicted.

On Oct. 11, as Lula's voters started complaining about their use of Meta tools, the big tech company told the electoral court it rejects accusations of being skewed to Bolsonaro. The company admitted it has faced technical glitches that affect accounts beyond Brazil. It also said it acts in full compliance with Brazil's electoral regulations and is committed to providing equal platform access for all political parties.

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