Summary
ChatGPT and other AI chatbots are being integrated in search results and many other contexts. However, what happens when AI gets it wrong? One Australian man is threatening to sue ChatGPT’s maker OpenAI for defamation due to the fact that ChatGPT implicated him in a bribery scandal. Can AI makers be held liable for false information?
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In 2011, Brian Hood was praised for showing tremendous courage when he helped expose a bribery scandal at Australia’s National Bank. However, at one point, ChatGPT said that Hood was among those sentenced to prison for the scheme. Hood’s next action could have significant implications for the future of AI.
For Personal Tech Media, this is Two Minute Tech. I’m Jim Herman.
Brian Hood’s planned lawsuit would be the first to test the liability of artificial intelligence for providing inaccurate data. In an interview, Hood, who now serves as the mayor of Hepburn Shire, stated, “There’s never ever been a suggestion anywhere that I was ever complicit in anything, so this machine has completely created this thing from scratch.” Hood confirmed he has begun the Australian process for filing a defamation lawsuit.
This ability for AI to produce inaccurate and potentially defamatory statements comes as more search engines implement AI summaries into their services. Microsoft Bing and Brave Search are just two of the search engines, and Google has promised to introduce a similar feature soon.
The ChatGPT site does provide a disclaimer that not all facts provided may be accurate. However, many people, including Hood and his attorneys, believe this warning is insufficient. They contend there is a difference between getting a few facts wrong and fabricating an entirely different story.
From a legal perspective, there’s no clear answer over who’s responsible if AI produces inaccurate or defamatory information. Whether the courts will be willing to hold the makers of AI responsible is yet to be determined.