Microsoft's chatbot provided false information about European elections

Researchers have found that the Bing chatbot (now Copilot) was giving erroneous information about the recent Swiss and German elections. According to a report by advocacy group AlgorithmWatch, nearly a third of the tool's responses to questions about the elections contained factual errors.

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In particular, the answers included incorrect dates, poll results, and references to candidates who did not participate in the elections. Bing often cited actual sources, but the numbers he cited were at odds with the original data.

The researchers note that Bing's defence mechanisms were unevenly triggered. In 30 per cent of cases the answers were correct, and in 39 per cent the chatbot refused to answer. However, it made serious factual errors when it came to facts rather than opinions.

Microsoft assured that it is taking steps to improve the accuracy of AI platforms, especially in the context of elections. However, the risk of misinformation from chatbots is a growing concern.

Source: The Verge