Google AI Error Falsely Labels Canadian Musician A Sex Offender

Ashley MacIsaac, a Juno Award‑winning fiddler, faced sudden reputational damage after Google’s AI Overviews falsely claimed he had been convicted of sexual offences. The AI summary appears to have confused him with another individual sharing his last name, a hallucination that led to the cancellation of his December 19 concert. Although the Sipekne’katik First Nation later apologized for acting on the misinformation, the professional harm was already done. Google acknowledged the error, noting AI Overviews can misinterpret sources. The incident highlights risks of automated summaries and raises urgent questions about platform responsibility and safeguards against false claims.