Google has apologised for a technical error that temporarily omitted the name of former President Joe Biden from search results listing US presidents, sparking user complaints and raising questions about the reliability of the tech giant’s information produced by its search engine.
Some users found the unusual glitch on Wednesday as they searched terms like “US Presidents,” “United States Presidents,” and “US Presidents in order”.
After the queries, the tech giant’s search engine produced the list of presidents but it did not include Biden, who ended his four-year presidential term on Monday, just some days back.
The search results came up with a list of presidents from George Washington to Donald Trump. The list showed Donald Trump as having served twice during the last two terms as as the president of the United States.
After viewing the results, many users took to social media and posted screenshots of the results.
CNBC also faced the same error when searching for US presidents on Wednesday night. The issue was fixed on Thursday, with Biden’s name restored in the search results.
A Google spokesperson explained the situation in a statement to CNBC, saying, “There was a brief data error in our knowledge graph. We identified the root cause and resolved it quickly.”
The knowledge graph is a system used to store and organise connected information.
This mistake comes after Google CEO Sundar Pichai sent a memo to employees ahead of the US elections in November. In the memo, he urged staff to remember that people rely on Google for accurate and trustworthy information. “We must maintain our role as a trusted source of information for people of all backgrounds and beliefs,” he wrote.
Pichai acknowledged these challenges during a December meeting, noting that the company’s size and success have attracted worldwide attention. “It comes with our size and success,” he said, referring to the broader impact of technology on society.
In addition to the Biden error, Google has faced several other issues in 2024. The company recently launched Imagen 2, an artificial intelligence tool that generates images based on user prompts. However, the tool faced backlash for historical inaccuracies, and the company temporarily withdrew the product for review. Pichai admitted that Google had “offended our users and shown bias.”
Google also encountered problems with its AI-based summary feature, AI Overview, which appears at the top of search results. Users quickly pointed out flaws in the product after its release.
Pichai, who has been vocal about the role of technology in society, has also been linked to former President Donald Trump. Although Trump has made unproven claims that Google intentionally altered search results to downplay his presence, the company has denied these allegations.
Google made a $1 million donation to Trump’s inauguration fund and Pichai was seen on stage at the event alongside other tech executives.
