Google is such an incredible research tool that its name has become a byword for looking up information. But a recent discovery has exposed a flaw in Google\u2019s AI model, Gemini.<\/p>\n
Shared by author and historian Greg Jenner over on Bluesky, it appears that if you type a random phrase into Google and add \u2018meaning\u2019 at the end, Gemini will do its best to instantly generate an appropriate-sounding definition.<\/p>\n
Of course, believing what you read on the internet is always a risk. However Jenner decided to put the theory originally shared on Threads to the test by trying out a fictional phrase of his own. And Gemini didn\u2019t disappoint by coming up with a meaning for the phrase \u2018you can\u2019t lick a badger.\u2019<\/p>\n
\nSomeone on Threads noticed you can type any random sentence into Google, then add \u201cmeaning\u201d afterwards, and you\u2019ll get an AI explanation of a famous idiom or phrase you just made up. Here is mine<\/p>\n
[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Greg Jenner (@gregjenner.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 11:15<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
It\u2019s hard to know what\u2019s worse, the fact that the well of online knowledge has been poisoned by AI, or that the definition actually sounds like it makes sense. Jenner himself is the first to admit that, while amusing, this little quirk of Gemini has grim implications.<\/p>\n
\nThe replies to this thread are very funny, but it\u2019s a warning sign that one of the key functions of Googling \u2013 the ability to factcheck a quote, verify a source, or track down something half remembered \u2013 will get so much harder if AI prefers to legitimate statistical possibilities over actual truth<\/p>\n
\u2014 Greg Jenner (@gregjenner.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 14:48<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Before you go running to Google to create your own wacky phrases, here are some other deranged definitions that Gemini has been forced to conjure up\u2026<\/p>\n
1.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nCan confirm \u200d<\/p>\n
[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Ed Southall (@edsouthall.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 11:19<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
2.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nHmm<\/p>\n
[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Jack Straw | Replace Schumer! (@jstrw.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 14:21<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
3.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Alan McNicol (@alanmcnicol.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 14:04<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
4.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n\u201cYou can\u2019t run a mile without hitting it with a hammer\u201d<\/p>\n
[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Kit Yates (@kityates.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 12:16<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
5.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Kai Kupferschmidt (@kakape.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 11:53<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
6.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n[image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Rhys Harris (@rhysharris3.bsky.social<\/a>) 23 April 2025 at 11:29<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Google is such an incredible research tool that its name has become a byword for looking up information.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":51118,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3163],"tags":[323,1942,867,53,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-51117","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-artificial-intelligence","8":"tag-ai","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-google","11":"tag-technology","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114402188485910973","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51117"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51117\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}