Meta, the parent company of Facebook, apologized for errors on its artificial intelligence chatbot about an anti-DEI reporter who filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the company.
Robby Starbuck says that the chatbot falsely claimed that he was present at the rioting on Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol and was charged with a crime, even though he says he was not even in Washington, D.C., at the time.
‘I couldn’t believe it was real so I checked myself. It was even worse when I checked.’
“The case is WILD and has implications for ALL OF US. On top of falsely calling me a criminal, Meta suggested my kids be taken from me,” he said on social media.
He posted a litany of other false accusations made against him on the AI resource and explains how he found out about the claims during an investigation into diversity, equity, and inclusion policies at Harley Davidson.
“We found this out in August of 2024 when I was exposing woke policies at Harley Davidson,” Starbuck wrote. “One dealership was unhappy with me and they posted a screenshot from Meta’s AI in an effort to attack me. This screenshot was filled with lies. I couldn’t believe it was real so I checked myself. It was even worse when I checked.”
He said that the company was informed about the false claims by his lawyers last year, but the misinformation continued.
“From that day I’ve faced a steady stream of false accusations that are deeply damaging to my character and the safety of my family,” Starbuck added.
He posted some screenshots of the chatbot on his social media account.
On Tuesday, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, apologized to Starbuck in a public statement.
“Robby — I watched your video — this is unacceptable. This is clearly not how our AI should operate. We’re sorry for the results it shared about you and that the fix we put in place didn’t address the underlying problem,” he wrote. “I’m working now with our product team to understand how this happened and explore potential solutions.”
Meta also said in a statement to The Hill that the company is constantly updating the chatbot to address these issues.
“As part of our continuous effort to improve our models, we have already released updates and will continue to do so,” said a spokesperson.
In a response to the apology, Starbuck said that the company responded only after he filed his lawsuit.
“While I’m the target today, a candidate you like could be the next target, and lies from Meta’s AI could flip votes that decide the election,” said Starbuck. “YOU could be the next target too. That’s why I’m taking on this David vs. Goliath fight. For me, my honor, my family, for our elections, and FOR YOU!”
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Robby starbuck vs meta, Starbuck lawsuit meta, Meta ai chatbot, Social media bias, Politics