Google is restricting its AI chatbot Gemini from answering questions about upcoming global elections this year, according to a new report. The announcement comes at a time when advances in generative AI, including image and video generation, have raised concerns about misinformation and fake news among the public, prompting governments to regulate the technology.
Google restricts AI chatbot Gemini from answering queries about global elections. (Photo: Google Gemini)
“ In preparation for the many elections taking place around the world in 2024, and out of an abundance of caution, we are limiting the types of election-related input queries Gemini will respond to, ” a Google spokesperson said. When asked about elections, such as the upcoming US presidential contest between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, Gemini responded: “ I’m still learning how to answer this question. In the meantime, try Google Search .”
Apart from the US, important elections are expected to be held in several major countries including Russia, South Africa and India, the UK,...
For now, it remains unclear whether Google will unblock Gemini from responding to election-related queries after the elections conclude later this year.
India recently required AI technology companies to get government approval before publicly releasing any “untrusted” or “experimental” AI tools, and required them to be labeled for the risk of giving false answers to warn users.
The move comes after a minor scandal involving Gemini and the Indian government last month. The AI tool was asked whether Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a fascist, and it responded that Modi was accused of implementing policies that some consider fascist. India's deputy minister of information technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, called it a "direct violation" of the Indian Information Technology Rules 2021.
Google's AI products have recently come under fire after some of the historical figures created by Gemini were inaccurate, forcing the company to pause the AI chatbot's image-generating feature late last month. CEO Sundar Pichai said the company is working to fix those issues, calling the chatbot's responses "biased" and "completely unacceptable."
Facebook's Meta platform said last month it would set up a group to tackle misinformation and the misuse of generative AI in the run-up to the European Parliament elections in June.
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