French AI chatbot taken offline after wild answers led to online ridicule

(CNN) — A French-language artificial intelligence chatbot backed by the French government has been taken offline after providing nonsensical answers to simple mathematical equations, and even recommending that one user eat cow’s eggs.

In a statement Saturday, the Linagora Group, a company that is part of a consortium developing the model, named Lucie, said it remains an “academic research project in its early stages.”

Lucie was released “prematurely,” said Linagora, adding that it should have been clearer in informing users of the limitations of the model in its current form.

“We were carried away by our own enthusiasm,” the statement reads.

Michel-Marie Maudet, general director of Linagora Group, told CNN that the team would now update its model and then test a beta version in private before a public relaunch.

After Lucie was launched Thursday, users took to social media to share its erroneous answers, including a response to a user query asking the chatbot to tell them about cow’s eggs.

“Cow’s eggs, also known as chicken’s eggs, are edible eggs produced by cows,” Lucie was quoted as replying. “Cow’s eggs are a source of protein and nutrients, and are considered to be a healthy and nutritious food.”

Asked to multiply 5 by (3+2), the model gave an answer of 17, instead of 25, and Lucie also said that “the square root of a goat is one,” users reported.

Launched with ambitions of challenging the dominance of the English language in AI and providing an alternative to models such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Lucie is named after the oldest human ancestor, said Linagora.

Its logo is inspired by both Marianne, a national symbol of France, and the US actress Scarlett Johansson, who starred in the film “Lucy,” according to a statement from Linagora published on January 3.

“Lucie is covered by a blue, white and red shawl, demonstrating her sovereign French personality,” the statement added.

Lucie has been backed by French President Emmanuel Macron as part of his France 2030 investment program, which includes a wide range of projects worth a total of €54 billion ($56.8 billion).

And Macron is currently preparing to host the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit, which will bring world leaders and tech figures to Paris from February 10 to 11.

The-CNN-Wire
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