Conservative activist sues Google over AI-generated statements, alleging "outrageously false" content.
A Delaware state court has seen the filing of a lawsuit against Google by Robby Starbuck, a prominent conservative activist. According to Starbuck's complaint, the tech giant's artificial intelligence systems generated false and defamatory information about him in response to user queries. The statements, which were allegedly delivered to millions of users, described Starbuck as a "child rapist", "serial sexual abuser" and "shooter".
Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda has denied that the claims were substantiated by fact, stating instead that they were part of "hallucinations" from Google's Bard large language model. The company worked to address these issues in 2023, but it seems that Starbuck is alleging that their efforts were insufficient.
This lawsuit comes as concerns about AI-generated content and misinformation continue to grow. Last year, Al Jazeera reported on how Google's VEO3 AI video maker had been used to create deceptive videos of news events. Starbuck has also previously sued Meta Platforms over claims of harassment and abuse, although the two parties have since settled.
Starbuck is seeking at least $15 million in damages from his lawsuit against Google.
A Delaware state court has seen the filing of a lawsuit against Google by Robby Starbuck, a prominent conservative activist. According to Starbuck's complaint, the tech giant's artificial intelligence systems generated false and defamatory information about him in response to user queries. The statements, which were allegedly delivered to millions of users, described Starbuck as a "child rapist", "serial sexual abuser" and "shooter".
Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda has denied that the claims were substantiated by fact, stating instead that they were part of "hallucinations" from Google's Bard large language model. The company worked to address these issues in 2023, but it seems that Starbuck is alleging that their efforts were insufficient.
This lawsuit comes as concerns about AI-generated content and misinformation continue to grow. Last year, Al Jazeera reported on how Google's VEO3 AI video maker had been used to create deceptive videos of news events. Starbuck has also previously sued Meta Platforms over claims of harassment and abuse, although the two parties have since settled.
Starbuck is seeking at least $15 million in damages from his lawsuit against Google.
! i gotta say, i'm low-key concerned about these AI-generated statements being spreaded like wildfire on google 
it's not cool that someone can just get defamed and make millions off of it 
but at the same time, how much accountability should google have? shouldn't they be more careful with their algorithms 
? starbuck seems like a legit dude, but still... this whole situation is giving me anxiety 
. Google's trying to address these issues, but it sounds like they still got some work to do.
. This is why we need more transparency from these big tech companies, you know? They gotta be held accountable for the crap they churn out.
. It's like, if Google can't get its act together, who will?
I'm literally shaking my head thinking about Robby Starbuck's situation... how can a machine just spew out such hurtful & wrong things?! 
Google needs to step up their game and make sure this doesn't happen again! 
It's like, we get it, AI is still learning, but shouldn't they be able to teach themselves not to spread false info about real people? 
the AI thingy might seem cool but it's also super sketchy and if it's generating lies that are being read by millions of people that's a huge deal 
what's next gonna be AI-generated fake news stories about politicians? 
. Do you guys think Google should've done more to stop this kind of thing from happening in the first place? 
. I mean, come on Robby Starbuck, you're basically saying that AI-generated content is reliable because... you said so? Give me a break! 
Google's Bard is still learning, it's not perfect but it's not like they're actively trying to defame him either. The fact that he's suing them for $15 million is just laughable 
, this guy needs to get his facts straight before taking on a giant like Google.
where AI "facts" get spun into crazy conspiracy theories, and people start believing them without even fact-checking. It's like we're sleepwalking into some sci-fi nightmare 
. I'm not saying the AI was definitely trying to trash Starbuck's rep or anything, but those kinds of accusations can ruin lives 
.
. I'm all for holding them accountable, but also hoping they can figure out ways to improve their quality control so this kind of thing doesn't happen again 
.
I'm all for holding tech companies accountable, but I think we need a more comprehensive solution to address the problem of AI-generated misinformation. 