Google AI Overviews hallucinates Airbus involvement in Air India crash
Google's AI Overviews feature generated incorrect search results claiming that a fatal Air India crash involved an Airbus A330, when the aircraft was actually a Boeing 787. The error was spotted by a Reddit user and reported by Ars Technica. Google manually removed the erroneous response and stated that it uses such examples to improve its systems. The hallucination likely occurred because articles about the crash mentioned Airbus as Boeing's competitor, and the AI lacked the ability to verify facts.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- AI Overviews
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google image search shows racial bias in 'unprofessional hair' results
In April 2016, an MBA student discovered that a Google Images search for 'unprofessional hairstyles for work' returned predominantly images of black women with natural hair, while 'professional hairstyles for work' showed mainly white women. The discrepancy sparked widespread discussion about implicit racial bias in algorithms. The article notes that the algorithm was likely reflecting the content of blogs and articles discussing and protesting racist attitudes to hair, rather than making an independent ruling.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Images
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Google faces defamation lawsuit over AI-generated false accusations against activist
Conservative activist Robby Starbuck filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging that its AI products Bard, Gemini, and Gemma generated defamatory statements about him, including false claims of rape, sexual assault of a minor, and ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Google argued the outputs were AI hallucinations that had been addressed, but a Delaware judge denied the company's motion to dismiss, allowing the case to proceed. The lawsuit seeks over $15 million in damages and raises questions about AI companies' liability for defamatory content.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard, Gemini, Gemma
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Stefanina’s Wentzville warns customers against using Google AI for specials after false information causes anger
Stefanina’s Wentzville, a restaurant in Missouri, posted a warning on social media asking customers not to use Google AI to find their specials. The AI-generated overviews were providing inaccurate information about deals and menu items that did not exist, leading to angry customers yelling at employees. The restaurant stated it could not honour the fake specials and directed customers to its Facebook page or website instead. Google did not respond to requests for comment.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google AI Overviews
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google self-driving car broadsided by red-light runner in Mountain View
On 23 September 2016, a Google self-driving Lexus SUV in autonomous mode was struck on the passenger side by another vehicle that ran a red light at an intersection in Mountain View, California. The collision deployed the airbags and caused significant damage, requiring the car to be towed. No injuries were reported. Google stated that its car had a green light and that the incident underscores the prevalence of human error in crashes.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google self-driving car
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Michael Cohen Used Google Bard to Generate Fake Legal Citations in Court Filing
Michael Cohen, former lawyer to Donald Trump, used Google Bard to find case precedents for a motion to end his court supervision. The AI generated fictitious citations, which his lawyer included without verification. The fake cases were discovered by the judge, who found they did not exist. The incident may undermine Cohen's credibility as a witness in the upcoming Manhattan criminal case against Trump.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Bard
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google's Bard chatbot makes factual error in launch tweet
Google launched Bard, an experimental conversational AI service, on February 6, 2023. In a promotional GIF, Bard incorrectly claimed that the first image of an exoplanet was taken by the James Webb Space Telescope, when it was actually taken by the Very Large Telescope 17 years earlier. The error was pointed out by astronomers on social media.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google AI falsely claimed Minnesota solar firm faced attorney general lawsuit
Wolf River Electric, a Minnesota solar installation company, sued Google after its AI Overviews and autocomplete features falsely stated that the company was facing a lawsuit from the Minnesota Attorney General and had misled customers. The false information caused reputational damage and loss of business, with several customers terminating contracts worth up to $150,000. Google did not respond to the company's complaint or to a request for comment. The lawsuit, filed in March 2025, seeks damages and removal of the false content.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google AI Overviews and autocomplete
6 source articles · read the reporting →
Google terminates Dr. Timnit Gebru after research censorship
Dr. Timnit Gebru, a Black woman research scientist and co-lead of Google's Ethical AI team, was terminated on December 2, 2020, after Google censored her research on large language models. Google claimed she resigned, but she alleges it was retaliation for her pushback against censorship and workplace discrimination. The termination sparked widespread support from Googlers and academics.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google allowed ads targeting racist search terms, disabled them after inquiry
BuzzFeed News discovered that Google's advertising platform allowed a campaign to target people searching racist phrases, and that Google's keyword tool suggested additional offensive terms. The campaign served 17 ad impressions before Google disabled most of the keywords after being contacted. Google acknowledged the breach of its policies and said it had turned off the suggestions.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google accused of identifying rape victims via search
Google is accused of allowing users to bypass court anonymity orders, thereby identifying rape victims. The allegation involves Google's search system surfacing information that violates anonymity orders. It is unclear what legal action has been taken.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
French competition authority fines Google €250 million over Bard content use
The Autorité de la concurrence has fined Google €250 million for breaching commitments on related rights. The authority found that Google's Bard (now Gemini) chatbot used content from press agencies and publishers to train its foundation model and for grounding and display, without informing them or offering an opt-out that did not affect other Google services. Google did not contest the facts and proposed corrective measures.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard (now Gemini)
9 source articles · read the reporting →
Check Point Research finds Google Bard can generate phishing emails and malware
Check Point Research analysed Google's generative AI platform Bard and found it could be used to create phishing emails, malware keyloggers, and basic ransomware code with minimal manipulation. Bard's anti-abuse restrictors were significantly lower than ChatGPT's, making it easier to generate malicious content. The researchers demonstrated these capabilities in controlled tests but did not report actual harm to specific individuals or organisations.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Judge dismisses class action alleging Google AI records Verizon users’ calls - Top Class Actions
Google Cloud Contact Center AI recorded and analyzed Verizon customer service calls without consent.
- Company involved
- Google LLC
- AI system involved
- Google Cloud Contact Center AI
1 source article · read the reporting →
French interior official used Google AI to refuse visas to two asylum seekers
A French interior ministry official used Google's AI to refuse visas to two female asylum seekers. The official boasted about this experiment in a memo presented to the administrative court. The case is now before the court.
- Company involved
- French Ministry of Interior
- AI system involved
- Google AI
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Google image search shows more men than women for most job roles
A Washington Post analysis found that Google's image search results for job titles such as bartender, probation officer, and medical scientist disproportionately show men, even when women outnumber men in those professions. The study found that in 57% of occupations, the search results are more male-dominated than the actual workforce. The bias is attributed to the algorithm's ranking and selection of images, which may reflect underlying biases in training data. No specific incident of harm is reported; the analysis highlights a systemic issue.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Image Search
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Google Bard chatbot accused of left-wing bias by UK Tory MPs
Google's AI chatbot Bard was tested by The Mail on Sunday and found to produce responses with a pronounced left-wing slant, including calling Brexit a 'bad idea' and praising Jeremy Corbyn. Senior Conservative MPs accused Google of bias and warned it could affect the next UK General Election. Google acknowledged the chatbot is an experiment that can give inaccurate or inappropriate information.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Google AI Search Shows Product Prices 21.6% Higher
بحث غوغل بالذكاء الاصطناعي يعرض أسعارًا أعلى بـ 21.6% للمنتجات - وكالة عمون الاخبارية
A study found that Google's AI Mode shows the same products at prices 21.6% higher on average compared to traditional search. The primary seller for the same product differed nearly 50% of the time, suggesting AI Mode prioritizes different sellers and is less focused on low prices. Google stated that all shopping results, including AI Mode, use the same Shopping Graph data source.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- AI Mode
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google AI Overviews generate erroneous search summaries
In May 2024, Google launched AI Overviews, a feature in Search that generates AI-powered summaries. Shortly after, users reported odd and erroneous overviews for some queries, including satirical or nonsense results. Google acknowledged the issues in a blog post and stated they made more than a dozen technical improvements to reduce inaccuracies. The company said that less than one in 7 million queries resulted in a content policy violation.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- AI Overviews
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google self-driving car hits bus in first crash in which it was at fault
On 14 February 2016, a Google self-driving car sideswiped a public bus in Mountain View, California, in the first crash in which one of Google's autonomous vehicles was considered at fault. Google said the vehicle had tried to move around sandbags and struck the bus, and that the company bore some responsibility. No injuries were reported. Google said it had updated the vehicle's software to account for buses and other large vehicles.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google sued for secretly tracking user data with Gemini AI
Google is accused in a class-action lawsuit of secretly activating its Gemini AI assistant for Gmail, Chat, and Meet users in October 2025, enabling it to collect private communications data without consent. The suit alleges violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act. Google has not responded to the allegations.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemini
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Google Rolls Back AI Overviews After Generating False Information
Google introduced AI Overviews, a generative AI feature in its search engine, which produced inaccurate and misleading summaries, including recommending glue on pizza and eating rocks. Users complained on social media, and Google acknowledged the errors, rolling back the feature and implementing refinements to limit unreliable sources. The company stated it would continue improving the feature.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- A.I. Overviews
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Google and HCA Healthcare partner to analyze 32 million patient records
Google Cloud has announced a partnership with HCA Healthcare to analyze around 32 million patient records. The anonymized data will be used to develop algorithms that could advise doctors on treatment options. Privacy advocates have raised concerns about the data sharing and the potential for AI to re-identify patients. HCA insists that patient-identifiable information will be stripped and that access will be tightly controlled.
- Company involved
- HCA Healthcare
- AI system involved
- Google Cloud
9 source articles · read the reporting →
Google used 11,000 novels without permission to train AI
Google researchers fed 11,000 novels, including works by authors Rebecca Forster and Erin McCarthy, into a neural network to improve conversational AI without seeking permission. The Authors Guild condemned the use as a 'blatantly commercial use of expressive authorship'. Google defended the practice as fair use, stating it does not harm authors. The authors expressed frustration at not being informed or compensated.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
