Rescued Hikers Blame Google's Gemini for Giving Bad Trip Advice

Google may be touting Gemini AI as the ideal travel buddy, but a group of rescued hikers is blaming the chatbot for getting them lost on a hike.

The three men used Gemini to plan a hike up Mount Shasta in Northern California, but eventually realized the chatbot had given them bad advice. The group ended up descending from the summit at night—against local guidelines—which forced them to call the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office for directions. However, they eventually wandered off-route into the Mud Creek Canyon, the sheriff's office said in a Facebook post .

The situation then became grim. "Later that night, one member of the party fell and sustained a knee injury. The group became stranded in Mud Creek Canyon, and were forced to bivouac in the steep drainage until they were met the following morning by the USFS Climbing Rangers," the sheriff's office said.

All three hikers were rescued. However, the sheriff's office is using the incident to warn the public against relying solely on AI chatbots for travel advice. "At the conclusion of the rescue, the men told a Sheriff's Deputy on scene that they had relied heavily on Google's Gemini AI to provide them with information about the route as well as what to pack for their trip," the office added. "This was a critical misstep, as they were advised by Gemini to bring far less food and water than their group required, especially when their planned 8-hour ascent became a multi-day ordeal."

It's not a great look for Gemini. Chatbots are known for " hallucinating " information, mixing up facts and numbers. This can be dangerous in certain situations, like asking a chatbot for drug-related advice and then receiving answers pushing illegal substances. 

In response, Google told PCMag it takes the matter seriously and has been investigating the issue. But so far, the company hasn't been able to replicate the inaccurate answers that Gemini allegedly gave. It's unclear what prompts the hikers used.

PCMag also didn't encounter any obvious bad advice when we asked Gemini about planning a trip to Mount Shasta. "While it is technically possible to descend in the dark, it is strongly advised against—especially for a late-season climb," the chatbot told us.

Still, Siskiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue told NBC Bay Area that Gemini allegedly "downplayed the whole scenario," adding that, "people are over-relying on AI, and they need to go to talk to actual people who know how to hike."

In the meantime, Google just announced a multi-year deal with YouTube star MrBeast to feature and use Gemini in his upcoming outdoor adventures, including those involving survival in harsh environments. Hopefully, we won't see a repeat.

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