Foreign diplomats in Taipei are warning that Taiwan faces the world's most intense foreign election interference as its local elections approach, and the threat is getting harder to fight as AI improves fake content.

• With 70 days until Taiwan's nine-in-one local elections, UK representative Ruth Bradley-Jones called election interference her biggest worry for the island, saying Taiwan is closest to the "fire" and "cannot afford" to be burned.
• She pushed back on Anduril founder Palmer Luckey's call for Taiwan to fight "asymmetrically" and outside the rules, saying Taiwan may fight unconventionally but must vote cleanly, which requires much stronger defenses against interference.
• EU representative Lutz Güllner said disinformation is not a messaging problem but a control tool, driven by an entire machine that produces and spreads content, with AI increasingly taking over; the key is tracking who is doing what, backed by transparency and consequences for the actors behind it.
• AIT director Raymond Greene said Taiwan has led the world on this issue for years, but AI is now making fakes better and fact-checking harder, with tech outrunning policy; older people and the very young remain the most vulnerable groups.
• All three praised Taiwan's civil society groups as a key asset, since neutral, non-partisan fact-checkers are more trusted than government, including by voters who oppose the ruling party.

Outlook: Expect Taiwan's government to lean harder on civil society, tech platforms, and law-enforcement partnerships to counter AI-driven disinformation before the vote, with pressure to hold the actors behind it accountable.