Alternative if you want to be hardcore: air gap the system you run questionable software on.

If you’re bored, you can even try to infect it with as much shit as possible.

Doesn’t work as a test system though. Stuff lies dormant waiting for network access.

I think another potential use, is targeting and manipulating vulnerable people for political reasons.

Perhaps convince them to stay at home on election day. Perhaps convince members of undesirable demographics to disproportionately kill themselves. Perhaps make vulnerable people so paranoid or scared that they end up killing people you want to get rid of. Perhaps convince someone vulnerable to commit politically convenient violence, which can be used as a false flag or to rally support.

Why leave that kind of thing to chance, when you can use AI to tip the scales in your favour?