warns tech companies against exaggerating AI claims
The FTC warns tech companies not to make unsubstantiated claims regarding AI as the hype around AI continues to grow.
“We’ve already warned companies to avoid automated tools that have biased and discriminatory impacts,” Michael Atleson (an attorney in the division advertising practices ) wrote in a blog post. “But, the fact is, some products with AI claims might even not work as advertised.” Marketers need to be aware that false or unsubstantiated claims regarding a product’s effectiveness are not only illegal, but also illegal for FTC enforcement purposes.
ChatGPT was launched by OpenAI at the end November, triggering a feeding frenzy in AI-related topics. In less than one week, more than a million people signed up for ChatGPT. That number had risen to 100,000,000. By February’s end. It was partly due to Microsoft’s announcement that it would add ChatGPT most of its products. Even Google’s botched announcement for Bard (its own AI-powered chatbot) has not cooled things.
Atleson said that artificial intelligence was an ambiguous term that could have many definitions in his amusing, sometimes poetic post. It’s a marketing term, that’s for sure. It’s hot right now. The FTC knows one thing about hot terms in marketing: Some advertisers will not be able stop using them.
Dig deeper: How AI can help your marketing right now
This post lists four criteria that the FTC will use to examine claims.
- Are you exaggerating the capabilities of your AI product?
- Do you promise that your AI product will be better than non-AI products?
- Are you aware about the dangers?
- Is the product using AI?
Atleson directs companies that the FTC will investigate more than just marketing materials. The FTC will employ in-house technologists to examine other materials and look under the hood to verify that your claims are being supported.
This warning comes at a time when the FTC is increasing its focus upon high-tech companies. The FTC launched an office for technology earlier this month and plans to increase the number of technologists on its staff by more than doubling.
Why we care. In the last month, we received many press releases on AI. Many were about existing integrations and others about future plans. Some of these plans may have seemed very recent to some, but they will happen. (Fat tip to the company that said “AI like” was a new capability.
These claims can be examined by the FTC which is a huge help for martech buyers. A lot of people buy a platform because they can use it in areas that they are not familiar with. They are occupied with evaluating the claims and capabilities of the platform. They don’t need to worry about whether the new, expensive solution actually uses AI.
MarTech! Daily. Free. Your inbox.