Google's Gemini to curb responses to some poll-related queries ahead of Lok Sabha elections

Gemini had recently courted controversy over a recent response to a query related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Google has begun to roll out restrictions on the types of election-related queries for which its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Gemini will provide responses, the search giant said on March 12.

The move is part of various measures the company is taking to help people navigate AI-generated content ahead of the 2024 general elections expected to be held in April-May.

"Out of an abundance of caution on such an important topic, we have begun to roll out restrictions on the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses," Google said in a blogpost.

Gemini will not provide a response to queries related to specific candidates, political parties, election results or notable office holders and will instead direct consumers to use its search engine product, Moneycontrol has learnt.

“We take our responsibility for providing high-quality information for these types of queries seriously, and are continuously working to improve our protections,” Google said.

This development comes at a time when Gemini has faced controversy over a recent response to a query related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, following which the Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the chatbot could be in violation of information technology rules.

Earlier this month, the IT ministry also urged intermediaries to seek explicit government permission before deploying new AI products.

The move is not unique to the Indian market. In February, Google mentioned a similar step ahead of the European Parliamentary Elections due later this year.

Digital watermarking

The tech giant said it is committed to ensuring that every image generated through its products have embedded watermarking with SynthID, a tool for watermarking and identifying AI-generated images from Google DeepMind.

Google's ads policies already prohibit the use of manipulated media like deepfakes or doctored content that can mislead people. The company has also launched new disclosure requirements for election ads containing synthetic content, it said in a blogpost.

"As more advertisers leverage the power and opportunity of AI, we want to make sure we continue to provide people with greater transparency and the information they need to make informed decisions" the company said.

In November, YouTube said it would soon require creators to disclose when they have created altered or synthetic content that "appear realistic", including videos using artificial intelligence tools.

It would display a warning label in the description panel indicating that some of the content was altered or synthetic.

In its blogpost, Google said it has already started displaying labels for content created with YouTube's generative AI features.

Voting information

Google said it is also collaborating with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to help people easily discover “critical” voting information on Google Search — such as how to register and how to vote — in both English and Hindi.

"During election season, YouTube surfaces a variety of election information panels, including on how to register to vote, how to vote and candidate information" the company said.

The company has also backed Shakti: India Election Fact-Checking Collective, a consortium of news publishers and fact checkers working together to help early detection of online misinformation, including deepfakes, and to create a common repository that news publishers can use to tackle the challenges of misinformation at scale.

The project will also provide news organisations and fact-checkers training in advanced fact-checking methodologies, deepfake detection, and the company's tools such as the Fact Check Explorer, the blogpost said.