Lesson 2 of 9 · Grade 8/9 · Information und Daten

AI always sounds sure – even when it is wrong

Why you should never blindly believe AI answers: invented facts, invented sources, hidden prejudices.

AI always sounds sure – even when it is wrong

The tricky thing about AI: it always answers confidently – even when it is way off. Because it phrases things so fluently, even wrong answers sound convincing.

AI always sounds sure – even when it is wrong

What you need to keep in mind

  • It invents facts. Wrong numbers, dates and names, phrased convincingly. Experts call this "hallucinating".
  • It invents sources. Sometimes the AI names books, quotes or links that do not exist at all. Always check for yourself.
  • It is not neutral. It picks up prejudices and gaps from the texts it was trained on.
  • "AI detectors" are not proof. Programs that supposedly recognise whether a text was written by an AI are often wrong.

What you need to keep in mind

★ Remember

Check it. With every AI answer, ask yourself: is that really true? Open real sources, compare with what you already know. Only if you know something yourself will you notice when the AI is talking nonsense.

AI always sounds sure – even when it is wrong

What you need to keep in mind (continued)

A good test: ask the AI about your school or a person from your town. You will often get confident answers that are completely made up.

Quiz question · Join in

An AI gives you a year and a source for it. What do you do?

  1. I check the year and open the source before I use it
  2. I believe it, the AI sounds very sure
  3. Sources from an AI are always right
  4. An AI detector proves to me that everything is genuine

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Everyday example

Die erfundene Quelle

Für ein Referat fragt Elias einen Chatbot nach Zahlen zur Mediennutzung. Antwort: „Laut der Studie von Prof. Berger (2021) sind es 4,7 Stunden.“ Die Studie gibt es nicht. Prof. Berger auch nicht.

? Warum erfindet die KI eine Quelle, statt zu sagen, dass sie es nicht weiß?

✓ Weil sie keine Quellen kennt, sondern Text erzeugt, der wie eine Quelle aussieht. Regel: Jede Zahl, jeder Name, jedes Zitat wird einmal nachgeschlagen, bevor es ins Referat kommt.

Simulation · AI always sounds sure – even when it is wrong

Das selbstsichere Orakel

Frage 1 von · richtig erkannt: 0

Alle Antworten klingen gleich sicher. Genau das ist das Problem: Der Tonfall verrät nichts über die Wahrheit.

Sample · lesson 2 of 9

That was the sample.

The full course “Medienkompetenz Klasse 8/9: KI, Recht und Respekt” has 9 lessons like this.

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✕ End presentation 1 / 9