- A tech start-up founded by Boris Johnson’s former data advisor has raised nearly £7 million to develop AI-powered public opinion polling technology.
- The company, named Electric Twin, was co-founded by Ben Warner – a former data expert at 10 Downing Street – and focuses on creating synthetic focus groups using AI.
- This technology allows governments and businesses to “sense-check” policies or products in just seconds, instead of taking weeks like traditional surveys.
- Electric Twin uses AI-controlled fake “voters” or “customers,” trained on real-world data and emotions to respond quickly.
- The company claims an accuracy rate of 91%, comparable to traditional public opinion polling methods.
- Users can ask thousands of questions in a short time, at a significantly lower cost than surveying real people.
- Electric Twin was founded in late 2023 and has previously received funding from LocalGlobe and the Guardian’s venture capital fund.
- The latest funding round comes from Atomico, an early-stage investment fund run by Niklas Zennström (Skype co-founder), which was an early investor in Klarna.
- Ben Warner gained attention for accurately predicting Donald Trump’s landslide victory in the 2024 US election, contrary to most polling firms.
- He is also a co-founder of Faculty, an AI company that provided data for the Vote Leave campaign in 2016.
- Despite its strong political background, Electric Twin currently states it refuses to work for political parties.
- Warner played a key role in warning of the risk of the UK health system collapsing in March 2020, contributing to the decision for a national lockdown.
- He believes the Covid period was the “peak” of government use of science and data modeling in policy-making.
📌 Electric Twin develops AI polling technology, using AI-controlled fake “voters” or “customers” trained on real-world data and emotions to provide rapid feedback. The company claims 91% accuracy, comparable to traditional polling methods. Raising nearly £7 million from Atomico reflects strong investor confidence in the AI-generated “synthetic person” model. However, this technology also raises questions about ethics, representation, and the risks of policy decisions based on data not derived from real humans.
