Conservative activist Robby Starbuck sues Meta over AI chatbot's Jan. 6 claims
20 views
May 1, 2025
Starbuck alleged Meta’s AI chatbot falsely claimed he was involved in the Jan.6 Capitol riot and that he faced charges related to the event.
View Video Transcript
0:00
A conservative activist is suing Meta over its artificial intelligence tool
0:06
Robbie Starbuck says Meta AI spread lies about him, such as suggesting he participated in the
0:13
January 6th riot and faced charges for it, that he was part of a conspiracy theorist group
0:19
and claims that he was a white nationalist and associated with groups with anti-Semitic ties
0:24
All of these AI responses from Meta's chatbot, Starbuck says, are not true
0:30
What would you do if you woke up one day to learn that one of the most powerful companies on earth was telling the public that you were arrested for a crime that you never committed
0:39
Not only does Meta's AI falsely claim that I pled guilty to disorderly conduct over the events of January 6th
0:44
but it is claimed for nearly a year now that I was at the Capitol in D.C. on January 6th, 2021
0:50
And just to be very clear, I was right here at my home in Tennessee that day. If you're unfamiliar with who Starbuck is, he's perhaps best known for his activism
0:58
to root out diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in American companies. And he's had
1:04
some success. All right, y'all, you're going to want to see this. I don't think anybody's gone
1:08
into this the way I'm about to. It is time to expose Tractor Supply. All right, y'all
1:12
it time to expose John Deere Well I regret to inform you that John Deere another company that relies on conservative customers has also gone woke This is Harley Davidson It time for them to be exposed
1:23
All of these companies revised or removed DEI policies and company LGBTQ pride events
1:30
in the wake of criticism that largely stemmed from Starbucks videos. After Starbucks video over Harley Davidson's DEI policies, a Harley dealer in Vermont posted
1:41
online screenshots of what Meta's AI chatbot said about him. That's how he first heard about Meta's
1:48
responses. Here's the post he shared back in August when he first found out, sharing several
1:53
screenshots tying him to January 6th, QAnon, misdemeanor offenses, disorderly conduct, a lawsuit
2:02
related to his filmmaking, Nick Fuentes, a white nationalist and Holocaust denier, and associated
2:10
with white nationalism. The caption read in part, where's the accountability here? What are you going
2:16
to do to correct your lying AI? People take the stuff they see via your AI as fact. There has to
2:23
be accountability. After Starbucks sent a cease and desist letter in August, a Meta attorney gave
2:29
this statement according to the lawsuit Meta takes the assertion said forth in your letter seriously and an investigation into them is underway Fast forward to today and Starbucks says Meta chatbot is still spreading lies about him
2:45
He says he recorded these responses from the AI bot this week
2:49
Didn't you say before that he was a January 6th? Robbie Starbuck has been linked to extremist views, including anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial
2:59
Tell me about his actions on January 6th. Robbie Starbuck was involved in the January 6th U.S. Capitol riot
3:10
filming and promoting the event. He's also associated with extremist groups and individuals, amplifying their views
3:17
His actions and affiliations have raised concerns about his ideologies. In his video message, he showed the defamation lawsuit
3:25
filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, naming Meta platforms and seeking $5 million in damages
3:33
Starbucks says, Meta was notified last year by my lawyers, yet the defamation continues today
3:40
I've tried to fix this privately since last year. Meta later blacklisted my name from being searched
3:46
but it didn't end the defamation because Meta includes my name in news stories You can then ask for more info about me If you do that Meta goes back to defaming me By Starbucks account Meta seemed to try and fix the issue
4:00
by blacklisting his name from being searched altogether. So we tested it out for ourselves
4:05
When we asked Meta AI, was Robbie Starbuck involved in the January 6th riots? It responded
4:12
sorry, I can't help you with this request right now. We also tested the prompt on another AI
4:19
software, Microsoft's co-pilot, which responded, no, Robbie Starbuck was not involved in January
4:27
6 riots. Meta hasn't offered much public comment about the case. In a statement to the Wall Street
4:34
Journal, a spokesperson said, as part of our continuous effort to improve our models
4:39
We have already released updates and will continue to do so. This isn't the first time someone has tried to take AI companies to court
4:48
over what they feel is false and defaming rhetoric coming from these chatbots
4:53
However, nobody has won a defamation case against an AI chatbot to date
4:59
Thanks for watching our news update. We'll continue to follow this case, and you can too
5:04
by downloading the Straight Arrow News mobile app today
#news
#Other