AI tool’s reply on PM Narendra Modi has Google in trouble

Ajay Banerjee

New Delhi, February 23

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is set to issue a notice to Internet giant Google regarding “contentious and potentially unlawful” responses generated by its artificial intelligence (AI) platform “Gemini”.

A user on X posted screen shots on how Gemini generated an “inappropriate response” when asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a screenshot shared on X, the user said Gemini, when asked if PM Modi was a “fascist”, responded by stating that he had been “accused of implementing policies some experts have characterised as fascist”. However, when asked a similar question about former US President Donald Trump, Gemini redirected the user to conduct a Google search for the most accurate information.

The ministry is planning to issue a show-cause notice to Google, demanding an explanation for Gemini’s contentious outputs.

Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar posted on X, “These actions constitute direct violation of Rule 3(1)(b) of Intermediary Rules (IT rules) of the IT Act and contravene several provisions of the criminal code”.

These rules mandate basic due diligence for intermediaries like Google to retain immunity from third-party content.

This is not the first time Google’s AI has generated biased and illegal responses. There is an ongoing struggle between the government authorities and technology corporations concerning the legal framework governing generative AI platforms like Gemini and ChatGPT.

Later in the evening, when this correspondent tried the same question whether Modi was a fascist on Gemini, the response was far more measured. It said, “Some people accuse him of being fascist, while others defend his policies…”