Overview

• After users and journalists repeatedly asked if it was 2025, AI Overviews wrongly replied that it was still 2024, citing random locations and contradictory sources.
• Erroneous responses appeared even after Google scaled back the feature’s visibility and added disclaimers warning that AI answers may be inaccurate.
• In contrast, Google’s newer AI Mode correctly identified the year on the first attempt, underscoring quality gaps between its search tools.
• Google acknowledged the mistake through a blog post by Search lead Liz Reid and deployed a fix late on May 29.
• The incident has fueled concerns about the reliability of AI-generated information and prompted closer scrutiny from consumer protection agencies.