Controversy has erupted as Google’s Artificial Intelligence system promoted false rumors about the funeral of Jeff Bezos‘ mother, even before the ceremony took place.
Read: Jeff Bezos: His mother Jaclyn dies – “I keep her safe in my heart forever”
Among these false claims were that rapper Eminem sang at the funeral and that Elon Musk appeared to comfort Bezos.
Bezos’ 78-year-old mother, Jaclyn Gise, died on August 14 after a long battle with Lewy body dementia, as announced by the Amazon founder.
What happened with the information about Bezos’ mother’s funeral
After her death, false information about her burial ceremony immediately appeared in Google’s AI search results, several days before the ceremony took place at the Caballero Rivero Westchester funeral home in West Miami, according to the Daily Mail.
Bezos and his new wife, Lauren Sanchez, were photographed holding hands at the modest ceremony, which was also attended by other members of the Bezos family.
However, a falsely generated Google AI overview of the ceremony claimed that “the ceremony was attended by family, friends and prominent figures, with reports of unexpected appearances by Elon Musk and Eminem, who allegedly delivered a moving speech,” according to the report.
The false report even claimed: “Eminem sang his 2005 hit ‘Mockingbird’ at the ceremony.”
One of the sources of misinformation was the website “BBCmovie.cc,” which uses a name similar to the legitimate BBC.
This particular website, which displays potential security threat warnings when someone tries to visit it, also contained fake, AI-generated photos of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk placing his hand on the shoulder of a tearful Bezos.
On Wednesday, another suspicious website published a narrative of Eminem’s supposed appearance, claiming he wore “a black suit, wool beanie low on his forehead, and dark sunglasses.”
“Whispers swept through the room. The man removed his sunglasses. It was Eminem,” the false article stated.
Google has since updated its AI overview about the funeral ceremony with accurate information.
The new and truthful version states that Jacklyn Bezos was surrounded by her family when she died at her home in Miami, according to her son.
“Her adult life began somewhat early, when she became my mother at the tender age of 17,” the 61-year-old billionaire wrote in a touching Instagram post.
Jaclyn, who helped her son start Amazon with an investment of nearly $250,000 in 1995, married his stepfather, Miguel Bezos, in 1968. Together they had his siblings, Christina and Mark.
“The vast majority of AI Overviews are high quality and meet our high standards of usefulness and accuracy,” a Google spokesperson said.
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However, AI Overviews, which are designed to provide quick answers to search queries, according to reports frequently produce “hallucinations” with false information and harm publishers by directing users away from traditional links.
