Ashley MacIsaac suing Google for $1.5M after AI summary confused him for convict
· Toronto Sun
Ashley MacIsaac, the Cape Breton fiddle star, is no stranger when it comes to controversy.
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The Maritime musician famously flashed his genitals during a performance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 1997 and yelled obscenities during a Halifax New Year’s Eve party in 1999. He declared personal bankruptcy in April 2000.
Stories were also written in the media about his marijuana advocacy before it became legal.
Now the 51-year-old fiddler is suing Google for $1.5 million for defamation after alleging the company’s artificial intelligence summary confused him with a convicted criminal from Newfoundland and Labrador with the same last name.
MacIsaac, who now makes his home in Windsor, filed the lawsuit earlier this month in Ontario Superior Court.
Nova Scotia concert cancelled
In his statement of claim, a concert at Sipekne’katik First Nation in Nova Scotia, which was planned for Dec. 19, 2025, was cancelled after community members did a search of his name and Google’s AI summary displayed erroneous facts, including that he was convicted of sexual assault, internet luring and other charges and was placed on a sex offender registry for 20 years.
“As the creator and operator of the AI Overview, Google is also liable for injuries and losses arising from the AI Overview’s defective design,” the lawsuit says, reported the National Post .
MacIsaac claims the company didn’t reach out at the time when his concert was scrapped, but apologized days later for its errors.
The summary was eventually corrected by Google. A search of his name using AI mode now says MacIsaac is a “world-renowned Canadian fiddler and singer-songwriter from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, celebrated for his innovative fusion of traditional Celtic music with rock and pop.”
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Seeking aggravated and punitive damages
The AI summary also said he has launched a recent legal action against Google for falsely identifying him as a sex offender after a mix-up with another individual with the same name.
A disclaimer at the bottom of the summary says “AI responses may include mistakes.”
But that doesn’t appear to be enough for MacIsaac, whose legal claim includes aggravated and punitive damages.
“If a human spokesperson made these false allegations on Google’s behalf a significant award of punitive damages would be warranted,” the lawsuit says. “Google should not have lesser liability because the defamatory statements were published by software that Google created and controls.”
The allegations have not been proven in court.
May have been jailed if he crossed border
“It’s a very scary situation where, if I had gone to a border, I probably would have been still in jail,” MacIsaac told Canadian music publication Exclaim! shortly after the concert was called off.
“(I’ve been) a public figure for years and there are stories written about me that are about marijuana and about me being gay, all that stuff … But when it comes to the serious nature of criminal offences, it’s completely false. It’s completely wrong.”
Stuart Knockwood, the executive director of Sipekne’katik First Nation, also apologized for cancelling MacIsaac’s show based on misinformation about the Celtic music star.
“We deeply regret the harm this caused to your reputation and livelihood,” Knockwood said at the time. “Chief and council value your artistry, contribution to the cultural life of the Maritimes and your commitment to reconciliation.”