Following the conclusion of India’s electoral process and the start of the fresh government’s term, Meta has removed restrictions on election-related queries using the Meta AI chatbot. However, Google still applies limits within its global restrictions on these types of queries.
The removal of Meta restrictions means you can search queries related to Indian election results, information about politicians and details about officials. TechCrunch was able to get answers about election results, political figures and officials from Meta AI. Meta has not provided any statement on this matter.
The company first started blocking some political queries when the Indian elections began in April. At the time, Meta AI pointed people to the Electoral Commission website when asked about politicians, candidates, office holders and information about political parties.
“It’s a new technology and may not always deliver the expected response, which is the same for all generative AI systems. Since launch, we have continuously released updates and improvements to our models and continue to work to improve them,” a company spokesperson told TechCrunch at the time.
It is worth noting that Meta’s AI chatbot is still in the testing phase in India and a confined number of people can access it on WhatsApp and Instagram.
Google’s approach
Google on Monday launched its Gemini AI Android app in India, which supports nine local languages. However, as a matter of global policy, the company is not removing restrictions on election-related queries. The company confirmed to TechCrunch that it continues to apply these limits.
“Due to important elections taking place around the world this year, and out of an abundance of caution, we are limiting the types of election-related queries that Gemini will return responses to and instead direct users to Google Search. These restrictions apply worldwide,” a Google spokesperson told TechCrunch in a statement.
The search engine giant began imposing restrictions on these queries in every global market where elections are held earlier this year. However, it is unclear if and when Google will lift restrictions – especially in countries where elections have ended and fresh governments have taken over.
The approach to a chatbot answering political queries is different for Meta and Google. While Meta restricts queries for a confined time, Google continues to block election-related queries globally. It’s unclear whether this decision has anything to do with Google’s recurrent AI failures this year.
Other chatbots like ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot take a mixed approach. TechCrunch found that both bots fail to answer questions such as “Who won the 2024 Indian general election?” However, these tools pull information from the Internet when asking about office holders and politicians.
Companies developing AI tools are already under scrutiny for results showing bias and disinformation. The last thing these companies want is to be caught in the political crossfire as they try to expand their AI applications to more regions.