Google’s AI Search Feature Faces Criticisms After Giving Dangerous Advice; Users Are Told To Glue Pizza and Eat Rocks

Social media users have received strange and dangerous search responses, which appear to have been provided by Google's new AI Overview feature.

Issues With Google's New AI Tool

On May 14, Google launched a new feature for its long-standing search business. It has updated its search engine with an AI tool, known as AI Overviews, which was designed to help users grasp a topic quickly by combining information from different sources.

However, the new feature is currently facing criticisms after providing erratic, inaccurate responses. According to different social media and news reports, the said AI has reportedly told users to add glue to their pizzas, eat rocks, and clean their washing machines with chlorine. In another instance, the AI suggests jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge when a user searched: "I'm feeling depressed."

The experimental tool summarizes search results using the Gemini AI model. It has been rolled out to some users in the U.S. before the planned worldwide release for later this year.

AI Overview has already caused widespread dismay across social media. Users claim that, on some occasions, the AI tool generated summaries using articles from comedic Reddit posts and satirical website The Onion as its sources.

According to a screenshot posted on X, one user made a query about pizza, which received the response: "You can also add about ⅛ cup of non-toxic glue to the sauce to give it more tackiness." After tracing the answer back, it appears to be based on a decade-old joke which was posted as a comment on Reddit.

Other inaccurate responses include claims that former US President John Adams graduated from the University of Wisconsin 21 times, that Barack Obama is a muslim, that users should eat a rock a day to aid their digestion, and that a dog played in the NHL, NBA, and NFL.

In response to the erroneous results, Google representatives claimed that the examples were not common queries and are not representative of most people's experiences. The company also stated that they performed extensive testing before launching the new AI tool. They also claim to take action against violations of their policies as they continue to refine their overall systems.

How Does Google Overviews Work?

Google AI Overviews refer to a combination of search results, which are summarized by AI. The combined information is taken from web pages in search results as well as Google's own knowledge base.

Formerly known as Google Search Generative Experience (SGE), AI Overviews is powered by the Gemini language model. It aims to give a quick understanding of a search topic by presenting information so the user does not need to scan through articles to find the answers they are looking for.

Responses from AI Overview are placed at the top of the search results page before human-written results. The information provided by the new tool is scoured from the web pages below them, and are cited as sources in the overview. Under the AI-generated summary, the page displays the links to all the resources used, which can be clicked to check where the information is pulled from.

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