Google AI Overview Falsely Claiming Obama A Muslim: Google to Take Action

Google claimed its new AI search tools would make finding information online faster and easier by “doing the work for you”. However, just days after the launch, the company is already manually correcting some incorrect results.

Earlier this month, Google launched a new tool that uses AI to summarize search results, helping users get quick answers without clicking on many links. However, this week the tool was criticized for giving false or misleading information.

For example, several users posted on X that Google’s AI summary said that former President Barack Obama is a Muslim, a common misconception. In fact, Obama is a Christian. Another user posted that a Google AI summary said that “none of Africa’s 54 recognized countries start with the letter ‘K’” — clearly forgetting Kenya.

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Google confirmed to CNN on Friday that the AI overviews for both queries had been removed for violating the company’s policies.

Google’s new search overviews are part of its effort to use Gemini AI technology in all its products, aiming to stay competitive with companies like OpenAI and Meta. However, this week’s problems highlight a big risk: AI can sometimes confidently give wrong information, which could hurt Google’s reputation as a trusted source for online searches.