Senator Blackburn Demands Google Shut Down AI Model After False Allegations

Nashville, Tennessee — Senator Marsha Blackburn is urging Google to discontinue its artificial intelligence model, Gemma, following claims that the AI generated false rape allegations against her and other conservatives.

In a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Blackburn asserted that Gemma produced an unfounded sexual assault allegation against her, along with fabricated news articles to support this false narrative. This action has prompted concerns regarding the potential bias within Google’s AI systems.

During a recent Senate Commerce Committee hearing, Blackburn confronted Google officials about what she termed “AI hallucinations.” These are incidents where AI models produce incorrect or misleading information presented as facts. She particularly highlighted how Gemma allegedly linked conservative activist Robby Starbuck to false accusations of child rape and financial exploitation.

Blackburn recalled her inquiry to the AI, asking, “Has Marsha Blackburn been accused of rape?” In response, the AI created a story suggesting she had a sexual relationship with a state trooper during her 1987 campaign for the Tennessee State Senate, which she corrected, stating she actually ran for the position in 1998. Blackburn declared, “There has never been such an accusation, there is no such individual, and there are no such news stories.”

The senator described the claims as more than a mere error or misunderstanding and labeled them as acts of defamation generated by a Google-operated tool. “A publicly accessible tool inventing false allegations about a sitting U.S. senator represents a catastrophic failure of oversight and ethical responsibility,” she emphasized.

Blackburn voiced concerns that Google’s AI demonstrates a repeated bias against conservative figures. Whether intentional or due to “ideologically biased training data,” she argued that the consequences remain the same: the erosion of public trust due to the spread of falsehoods. She is demanding explanations from Google on how the AI-generated these claims and what steps the company will take to ensure accuracy moving forward.

Google has not provided a comment to the inquiries regarding this matter. Meanwhile, Blackburn continues to call for accountability, insisting that Google should shut down Gemma until it can effectively regulate its outputs.