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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Entertainment
Sian Cain

Canadian fiddler sues Google after AI Overview wrongly claimed he was a sex offender

Ashley MacIsaac on stage
Canadian musician Ashley MacIsaac is suing Google for defamation after its AI Overview falsely identified him as a sex offender. Photograph: The Canadian Press/Alamy

An acclaimed Canadian fiddle player has launched a $1.5m civil lawsuit against Google, alleging that the online giant defamed him by falsely identifying him as a sex offender in an AI-generated summary of his life and career.

Ashley MacIsaac, a three-time Juno award-winning musician, filed the claim in the Ontario superior court of justice, asserting that Google was liable for the “foreseeable republication” of its AI-generated Overview feature, which previously published defamatory claims that he had been convicted of multiple criminal offences, including the sexual assault of a woman, internet luring involving a child with the intention of sexual assaulting the child, and assault causing bodily harm.

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