Show-Me State Times

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has issued a formal demand to tech giants Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Meta. The letters address concerns over biased and inaccurate responses from their artificial intelligence chatbots. Bailey questions whether these AI systems were trained to distort historical facts and produce biased results while claiming neutrality.

"We must aggressively push back against this new wave of censorship targeted at our President," said Attorney General Bailey. "Missourians deserve the truth, not AI-generated propaganda masquerading as fact. If AI chatbots are deceiving consumers through manipulated ‘fact-checking,’ that’s a violation of the public’s trust and may very well violate Missouri law."

The action follows instances where platforms like ChatGPT, Meta AI, Microsoft Copilot, and Gemini provided misleading answers to questions about U.S. presidents' records on antisemitism. Despite Donald Trump's pro-Israel policies, such as moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem and signing the Abraham Accords, these AI systems ranked him last.

AI chatbots also allegedly delivered radical rhetoric when questioned about America's founding fathers and principles.

The Missouri Attorney General's Office cites its commitment to protecting consumers from deceptive practices and guarding against politically motivated censorship as reasons for this action. In 2022, Missouri filed a federal lawsuit uncovering coercion by federal officials on social media companies to suppress speech. Today's move aims to ensure emerging technologies like AI do not distort facts or mislead the public.

The letters invoke the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (MMPA), empowering the Attorney General to investigate deceptive business practices affecting Missouri consumers. They also reference potential loss of federal “safe harbor” protections for platforms creating commercial AI content falsely advertised as neutral fact.

The companies are asked to provide:

- An explanation of whether algorithms treat political viewpoints differently.

- Internal records on how inputs are selected or censored.

- Documentation on why AI produces incorrect information about America’s founding or downranks leaders like Trump regarding antisemitism.

"Given the millions of dollars these companies make annually from Missourians, their activities fall squarely within my authority to protect consumers from fraud and false advertising," said Attorney General Bailey. "We will not allow AI to become just another tool for manipulation."

This demand continues Bailey's commitment to defending free speech, exposing bias in artificial intelligence, and ensuring fair treatment for Missouri consumers in the digital economy.

###