Canadian musician Ashley MacIsaac is expressing concern about his safety and has even lost a gig over an erroneous Google AI summary that incorrectly labeled him as a sex offender.
The fiddler, singer, and songwriter was preparing to play a concert at Sipekne’katik First Nation last Friday. Leadership at the venue cancelled the performance, noting that the search results stated the singer had convictions pertaining to sexual assault, according to The Globe and Mail.
“Google screwed up, and it put me in a dangerous situation,” MacIsaac noted to the paper. The venue has since apologized to MacIsaac, and the Google AI summary has been corrected.
“People should be aware that they should check their online presence to see if someone else’s name comes in,” MacIsaac said.
A Google spokesperson told The Globe and Mail that “search, including AI Overviews, is dynamic and frequently changing to show the most helpful information.
“When issues arise — like if our features misinterpret web content or miss some context — we use those examples to improve our systems, and may take action under our policies.”
The artist has won three Juno awards, including Best New Solo Artist and Best Roots & Traditional Album – Solo in 1996.