Sundar Pichai’s interview with the BBC reveals AI’s true worth

In a frank interview with the BBC, Sundar Pichai - head of Alphabet, Google’s parent - admitted that the company’s own AI tools cannot be taken at face value. “People should not ‘blindly trust’ everything AI tools tell them,” he warned, urging users to double‑check Gemini’s answers with Google Search and other sources.

The comment hits hard when you consider the UK government’s recent decision to give Google “Strategic Market Status” under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA).

His interview blatantly contradicts Google’s statements from when it was designated as a monopoly. It claimed the designation – which affects the whole of Google’s business – would “hold up innovation,” and bring AI innovation to British consumers at a slower rate than elsewhere. But here Pichai tells the public that Gemini isn’t very good at what it tries to achieve, particularly when it comes to news or anything where people need factual accuracy.

In the interview with the BBC, he says:

“While AI tools were helpful "if you want to creatively write something", Mr Pichai said people "have to learn to use these tools for what they're good at, and not blindly trust everything they say...”…“We take pride in the amount of work we put in to give us as accurate information as possible, but the current state‑of‑the‑art AI technology is prone to some errors.”

In Google’s statement published in October 2025, the company said:

“Many of the ideas for interventions that have been raised in this process would inhibit UK innovation and growth, potentially slowing product launches at a time of profound AI-based innovation. Others pose direct harm to businesses, with some warning that they may be forced to raise prices for customers.”

These words underline a simple fact: Google’s AI, even the freshly launched Gemini 3.0, still makes mistakes. Independent researchers have repeatedly shown that generative models hallucinate, misrepresent news and sometimes spew outright falsehoods. AI assistants mis‑summarise news stories most of the time, which is unacceptable if these tools are to be the sole gatekeepers of information.

Why does this matter for independent media? Because the same algorithms that power Gemini also dictate what appears in Google Search and Discover.

When Google’s AI becomes the default window onto the world, the balance of editorial control shifts from human journalists to an opaque machine‑learning system owned by a single corporation. This further weakens independent publishers reliant on Google's ecosystem, which have designed their business models around visibility in Search.

Smaller publishers, in particular, will be affected the most, as they often have limited resources and may struggle to adapt to new models. Our research indicates that referrals from Google Search are declining rapidly and that Google Discover is propping it up. This creates a troubling scenario for both the public and publishers, as it leads to even less accurate results linked to organic reach. Instead, more results will originate from an opaque algorithm that few truly comprehend, inundated with low-quality AI-generated content.

The Independent Media Association is preparing to bring Google to the negotiating table, backed by a strong set of research collected the collective bargaining coalition we’ve formed with the Independent Community News Network and the Independent Publishers Alliance.

Only by negotiating with Google can we ensure that the promise of AI does not become a Trojan horse for further market concentration.

Pichai’s own cautionary remarks should not be brushed off as modesty. They are a warning bell for anyone who believes a single corporate AI can serve the democratic need for diverse, accurate news.

Independent media deserve a seat at the table, a fair share of the AI‑driven future, and safeguards that keep the information ecosystem pluralistic and trustworthy. The time to act is now.