Google fumbles Gemini Super Bowl ad's cheese statistic | TechRadar
Here’s how it works. Google’s Gemini AI assistant fumbled an ad set to air during the Super Bowl when sharp-eyed viewers spotted a cheesy statistical error.
The Error
The feel-good ad showcasing how AI can help small businesses featured a Wisconsin cheesemonger using Gemini to generate a product description for Gouda, only for the AI to confidently declare that the cheese accounts for "50 to 60 percent of global cheese consumption." However, this is a full-blown dairy debacle, as there's no evidence that Gouda is anywhere near that popular.
Social Media Backlash
The error was called out on social media, with plenty of cheeseheads deriding the idea that half the world's cheese supply is Gouda. Gemini had done what AI occasionally does: confidently hallucinate an absolute nonsense fact and present it as the truth.
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Google's Response
At first, Google’s VP Jerry Dischler stepped in to defend Gemini, at least a little bit. He insisted the statistic wasn’t an AI hallucination but came from multiple websites that Gemini had scraped for the statistic.
Ad Adjustment
Companies pay millions to get everything just right for high-profile Super Bowl ads. So Google re-edited the ad, quietly removing the Gouda claim altogether. The new version, now posted on YouTube, keeps the friendly cheesemonger but ditches the dairy misinformation.
Controversy
Even the new video upload wasn't without controversy, as it replaced the original but with the flawed ad's timestamp, suggesting Google used its ownership of YouTube to finesse the new video into the slot of the original.
Gemini's History of Errors
This isn’t the first time Gemini has found itself in hot water over fact confusion. The gouda gaffe is far from the worst mistake Gemini has made.
Trust Issues
Still, if Google wants people to trust Gemini with their lives and businesses, these kinds of errors aren't going to help.
Conclusion
For the average person, it's a good reminder that AI still struggles with accuracy and shouldn't be the only arbiter of what gets treated as fact.
Eric Hal Schwartz is a freelance writer for TechRadar with more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of the world and technology. Now, he's continuing to tell the stories people want and need to hear about the rapidly evolving AI space and its impact on their lives. Eric is based in New York City.
