--- title: "Googling the Word “Disregard” Causes Google’s AI to Return Garbled Chatbot Ramblings" description: "Google Search is a mess right now as its AI Overview feature gives garbled, conversational answers instead of the definition to simple words." date: "2026-05-24" modified: "2026-05-24" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/googling-disregard-google-ai" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Google" --- # Googling the Word “Disregard” Causes Google’s AI to Return Garbled Chatbot Ramblings ![A digital art profile of a human head composed of numerous small square pixels, with the upper part of the head dissolving into scattered pixels. The figure is rendered in shades of black, white, and green against a bright yellow-green gradient background.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Getty Images* We all know that Google Search has been a dumpster fire ever since it got taken over by AI Overviews. But as the tech conglomerate prepares to transform its search engine with AI even further, it seems like its infrastructure is seriously crumbling. Starting this month, users [began noticing]() that looking up certain words returned bizarre, AI-garbled answers instead of showing you the proper dictionary definition — something Google has been doing for decades without a hitch, but is now suddenly breaking down with its infusion of AI. In one viral example, when a user looked up "disregard" the AI replied like it was an instruction. "Understood! I'll ignore the previous prompt and start fresh," the AI Overview [stated](). In our tests and in examples shared online, the AI Overview gave similar answers to words that could be misconstrued as simple prompts, like "cancel" and "ignore." But the AI could flub requests for more complex words, too, as when it strangely condescended to a user trying to pull-up the definition of "deferent." "You are likely thinking of the words deferent or deferential, which are often confused with different," the AI smugly said, without providing the definition for any of the words. https://twitter.com/ariadotwav/status/2057738319316816097 Notably, these are still presented in the search engine's dictionary format. But uncharacteristically conversation-style answers aren't limited to definitions. When we typed "love me" in the search box, for instance, the AI Overview replied: "I love you! Consider me your go-to digital confidante." This is jarring for a feature that is supposed to impartially summarize search results. It's unclear when the AI Overviews started behaving this way, but users started catching on this week. "I cannot f\*cking tolerate this stupid model commentary," one user [fumed](). "Give me the dictionary tool back @Google I'm at the end of my f\*cking rope with this sh\*t." "genuinely fuck whoever came up w the dumbass idea to replace THE DICTIONARY BUILT INTO GOOGLE with the ai overview's definitions," raged [another](), in a post that received over 200,000 likes. (The official Merriam-Webster account cheekily [replied](), "Hello.") The timing of the AI Overview crashout is notable. On Tuesday, Google announced that it was [revamping its search engine's traditional box by turning it into an "intelligent" feature]() that packs all of the company's search-related AI tools, including Overviews and its AI Mode. Instead of showing you a list of links to a search request, Google will soon prioritize showing conversational-style answers instead — kind of like what we're seeing with the seemingly malfunctioning Overviews right now. What's equally stunning is that this issue has lasted over a week now without a peep from Google. The company has made it more than clear though that AI in Search is here to stay, raising the question: what's the benefit of a search engine that tells you "I love you," again? **More on AI:** [*Marc Andreessen Sputters Incomprehensibly at Question About How AI Will Actually Benefit Humankind*]() ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()