MoS IT warns Google: India's digital citizens not to be experimented on with 'Unreliable' AI models

MoS IT warning Google: Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar issued a stern warning to Google, saying India's digital citizens should not be subjected to experimentation with unreliable platforms and algorithms. This declaration follows concerns raised over Google's AI tool Gemini, which exhibited bias in response to a question regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In response to Google's acknowledgment that the chatbot "may not always be reliable," especially concerning current events and political topics, Minister Chandrasekhar stressed that such explanations do not exempt platforms from legal obligations. He reiterated the government's stance that ensuring the safety and trust of digital citizens is imperative.

Expressing immediate concern over the issue, Chandrasekhar highlighted violations of IT rules and criminal code provisions. Verified accounts pointed out the bias in Gemini's responses, where uncharitable comments were made about PM Modi while similar questions about other leaders received more circumspect replies.

Google, in response, stated that they have swiftly addressed the issue and acknowledged ongoing efforts to improve the reliability of Gemini. However, the Minister reminded both Google and the Ministry of Electronics and IT that further action is warranted.

Gemini's text-to-image generation feature has also faced scrutiny, leading to Google pausing its image generation of people due to inaccuracies flagged in historical images. The AI chatbot's perceived biases have sparked discussions on social media, with some users describing it as "too woke" when generating historical images.

(With PTI inputs.)