Inaccurate AI overviews are manually removed by Google from search results

Google has begun taking human action to eliminate false results produced by its recently released AI-powered search tool, Google Overviews, following many instances of false material surfacing on social media. The tool was discovered to suggest ridiculous solutions, such as putting glue on pizza. Google has been responding quickly to the problem, turning off AI Overviews for specific types of web searches.

A few days ago, several cases came to light on social media platforms where Google's AI Overviews provided inaccurate and unhinged responses to queries – a problem that is associated with AI hallucination.

On one occasion, a user reportedly turned to Google for a solution for “cheese not sticking to pizza”. In a bizarre response, AI Overviews suggested they “add ⅛ cup of non-toxic glue to the sauce to give it more tackiness”. The source of the response turned out to be a sarcastic Reddit comment from 11 years ago.

In one of the reported instances, a user recently asked Google, “did any president ever have a ferrari”, to which it provided an accurate response, stating that “US President Donald Trump owned at least one Ferrari”.

In another instance, it suggested that “eating at least one rock per day is recommended because rocks contain minerals and vitamins that are important for digestive health” – quoting geologists while taking reference from a satirical 2021 article by The Onion.

However, it is now being reported that searching for the same query does not bring up an AI-generated response anymore. Instead, Google now reportedly mentions, “An AI Overview is not available for this search”. In an email, Meghann Farnsworth, Communications Manager at Google emphasised that the company is “taking swift action” to remove certain AI Overview responses to queries.