Michael Schumacher’s family awarded £170,000 damages over shocking AI-generated ‘interview with stricken F1 star’
MICHAEL Schumacher’s family were paid £170,000 in compensation after a magazine published a fake AI-generated interview with the F1 racing legend.
German publication Die Aktuelle claimed last April to have secured a “world exclusive” with the severely injured Ferrari great – who has not been seen in public since his 2013 skiing accident.
In a two-page spread, promoted with a picture of Schumacher, it claimed the seven-time F1 champ had said “My life has totally changed”.
It promised it was not a story based on “half-sentences from friends” but it’s “the incredible interview” with the F1 star with “redeeming answers to the most burning questions that the whole world has been asking for so long.”
The rest of the article was written in Q&A form, with an AI chatbot designed to mimic celebrities making up the answers Michael would supposedly give.
The bot even spoke about the racing hero’s physical condition, family and future recovery prospects.
The twisted article, titled “My life has completely changed,” started with: “The chance to talk to him once. To ask him how he’s really doing.”
Die Aktuelle only admitted the quotes, which used graphic details to describe his injuries, were written by a chatbot in a note on the inside pages.
On Tuesday, Germany’s Munich Labour Court revealed the magazine’s parent firm Funke Media had paid €200,000 (£170,000) in compensation to the Schumacher family after they threatened to launch legal action.
Details of the settlement were revealed in a separate employment case brought by former Die Aktuelle editor Anne Hoffmann, who was sacked after deciding to print the story.
The court ruled that her dismissal was not justified meaning the publication could also face paying her a settlement fee, German publication UberMedia reported.
Representatives for Schumacher’s wife Corinna suggested the family would sue after the fake interview last year.
Dad-of-two Michael, 55, spent six months in a medically induced coma following an off-piste skiing accident in Meribel, France, in December 2013.
Little has been made public about his current health, with ex-Ferrari boss and close friend Jean Todt declaring: “He is no longer the Michael we knew in Formula 1.”
Schumacher’s seven titles, in a 20-year F1 career, is a joint record with Brit great Sir Lewis Hamilton.
His son Mick, 25, raced in F1 for two years and is currently a reserve driver for his dad’s former Mercedes team.
Representatives for the Schumacher family and Funke Media were asked to comment.
The shameless interview just goes to show how “poisoned” bots can be weaponised, an expert warned.
DANGEROUS DIGITAL BOTS
Lisa Palmer, an AI analyst and expert, told The Sun Online just how dangerous the digital bots can be in these situations – and how they could be used in increasingly scary and dangerous ways.
She warned content like fake AI generated interviews will only become more and more common as the technology developments and is misused by “rotten” actors.
“Lawsuits are already pending for defamation due to ‘lies’ being perpetuated by generative AI tools like ChatGPT,” she told The Sun Online.
Asked if it’s something we will be seeing more in the future she replied: “Yes, fakes in every form – written, voice, and video – are all exploding.”
Palmer warned that following the shocking Schuey publication, bad actors seeking to grab viewership will be tempted to use the AI interview method more.
She even related the nightmare situation to the severity of a chef selling rotten food to their customers.
“A chef who serves rotten food is unethical and puts their customers’ health at risk,” she said.
“Rotten food leads to personal illness. Rotten reporting leads to societal illness.”
Palmer added: “Imagine if major news outlets ran a fabricated political story that caused an uprising among citizens? This type of unethical reporting is incredibly dangerous.
“This is the worst possible combination of powerful technology in the hands of unethical people.
“Now, imagine that these fake stories become training data for AI systems.
“Newer versions of AI are now ‘poisoned’ with lies.”