Farmer trusted AI after it gave good advice, then it helped wipe out 25 acres of his crops

[midian182]

Facepalm: Most readers of this site know not to blindly trust AI on important matters, even if it got things right before. A farmer in Chuzhou, China, discovered this the hard way when he took weed and pest control advice from a chatbot. The result was the death of 25 acres of crops.

The 67-year-old farmer was recommended by the AI to use "high-efficiency flupyrimethalin" and "flusulfasulfaether" (flufenacet) to kill weeds and mix it with "thiamethoxazine" and "methyl salt." As reported by Taiwanese Chinese-language news website CTWANT (via Tom's Hardware), he followed the instructions blindly, failing to check that what he was doing was safe.

It wasn't until the next morning that the farmer realized he shouldn't have been so hasty. Around 24.7 acres of his sesame seedlings were dead.

The presumably upset farmer returned to the AI to ask why this had happened. The reason, apparently, was the use of "flusulfasulfaether." The herbicide is mainly used to kill broadleaf weeds in soybean fields, but as sesame is classified as a broadleaf plant, it's affected by the chemical.

The AI also confirmed that "flusulfasulfaether" is supposed to be sprayed directly onto affected areas only, rather than spreading it across an entire field, which is how the farmer applied it, unfortunately.

The angry farmer said that the AI never warned him of the dangers of following its advice but, as any chatbot will tell you itself, it can make mistakes, misunderstand details, or rely on incomplete information. It's why ChatGPT has a disclaimer at the bottom warning that it can make mistakes and that users should check important information.

What's especially ironic in this instance is that the farmer initially didn't trust the AI app, but he changed his mind after it proved helpful. Given the end result, he probably should have trusted his gut.

There's a long list of people putting their trust in AI-generated answers and regretting it. One of the worst cases happened last year when a 60-year-old man, after reading reports on the negative impact excessive amounts of sodium chloride (common table salt) can have on the body, decided to remove it from his diet.

When the man asked ChatGPT about substances that could replace salt, one of its suggestions was sodium bromide, which can be true for certain applications, such as cleaning, but certainly not for food. As the man discovered, his new diet gave him bromism, a.k.a. chronic bromide poisoning, a psychiatric disorder not commonly seen since the 19th century.

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Farmer trusted AI after it gave good advice, then it helped wipe out 25 acres of his crops

 

[RudyBob]

This was no farmer that did this. Farmer's are a lot more intelligent. Unless they live in Hooterville.

 

[user556]

This was no farmer that did this. Farmer's are a lot more intelligent. Unless they live in Hooterville.

Even though LLMs do not have intent, they still speak with confidence. That alone can trick people.

 

[bviktor]

Yep. Definitely taking all our jobs.

 

[DrSuess]

I think CoPilot is still labeled "For Entertainment Purposes Only". They did this because they didn't want to get sued and people seem to believe everything they see and hear from the internet is true. They didn't anyone drinking bleach because CoPilot told them it was a good way to get rid of viruses.

 

[JMGuy]

Even though LLMs do not have intent, they still speak with confidence. That alone can trick people.

No. AI is a computer program, not a scapegoat for human laziness.

Feeling “tricked” by AI is a signal—a crystal clear symptom of an inability to judge good output. It’s an “inner voice” revealing a person's ignorance; AKA: naively accepting a spoon-fed answer for something a person is ill-equipped to verify due to lack of domain knowledge.

It’s actually OK to discover you have something more to learn. That is not a failure. We learn what we learn whenever we learn it. Nobody is born with knowledge. Stupidity, however, is the inability to recognize lessons and adjust.

AI doesn't “trick” people; it magnifies capability or lack of capability. I.e. it enhances productivity for those who know a field, how to verify results, and correct for deviation, and multiplies incompetence for those who don't. Use it with caution, verify the data, and blame your own lack of due diligence if you get it wrong.

 

[Axeia]

Before doing anything that could potentially cost you big. At the very least check with some of the other models.

I've had it plenty of times where before blindly trusting Gemini's output I run it by Claude it'll have a different opinion or useful supplemental information. People really need to get it in their heads that AI can get things very, very wrong no matter how will written the response is and how often it's been right before.

You live and you learn I guess, even at the farmers age of 67.

 

[NumberNine]

Well, at least it's marginally more interesting than reading recycled Google analytics reports about what people are searching this month. A little critical thinking goes a long ways.

 

[user556]

No. AI is a computer program, not a scapegoat for human laziness.

It's irrelevant what the narrator is. Being tricked is about confidence. Once the confidence is gained the speaker is treated as truthful.

Sure, the dude let his guard down but everyone does at some point. You, me, everyone is susceptible. Why do you think Trump suddenly thought it was a good idea to start bombing Iran when he'd previously complained so much about throwing away money on war?

 

[user556]

The best defense is to have a variety of heads reviewing. But that requires a continuous team effort, which farmers often don't have. Especially small holdings.

Writing the plan down, as you imagine it, can be fantastic for going over the plan in logical steps. Adding notes and proposals and solutions. In the organising process the flaws begin to stand out.

 

[wiyosaya]

IMO, this just goes to show that literally everything AI "says" needs to be verified. AI is not an explicitly trustable savior of humanity even though it has been marketed as such and people are dumb enough to believe that marketing.

 

[occsdude]

I approach chatbots like a lousy secretary that thinks they know it all and occasionally gives good advice. And that's worked out pretty well for me.

 

[estk7teds]

This was no farmer that did this. Farmer's are a lot more intelligent. Unless they live in Hooterville.

Grew up on a farm, surrounded by farms. Most farmers are *****s with barely a 3rd grade education. I'm going to assume you're one more to add to that list.

 

[toooooot]

Would be funny if it was nto so sad

 

[The Eck]

What’s the point of the daily anti AI barrage, Techspit? Millions of farmers are already using AI systems successfully yet you ignore all that to focus on the one in a million exceptional?

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Grew up on a farm, surrounded by farms. Most farmers are *****s with barely a 3rd grade education. I'm going to assume you're one more to add to that list.

It's no surprise that a farmer with a 3rd grade education thinks all farmers are as dumb as he is.

Probably shouldnt be broadcasting that online though.

What’s the point of the daily anti AI barrage, Techspit? Millions of farmers are already using AI systems successfully yet you ignore all that to focus on the one in a million exceptional?

Putting ai agents in a Google search doesn't mean millions of farmers are "using AI".

IMO, this just goes to show that literally everything AI "says" needs to be verified. AI is not an explicitly trustable savior of humanity even though it has been marketed as such and people are dumb enough to believe that marketing.

AI is only as good as it's data set, and the internet is full of misinformation. Not a good combo.

 

[RudyBob]

Grew up on a farm, surrounded by farms. Most farmers are *****s with barely a 3rd grade education. I'm going to assume you're one more to add to that list.

I married into a farm family. Potatoes and dairy. So I have experience with a wide range of farmers. I stand by my comment and I am ashamed for you.

 

[RudyBob]

'after it gave good advice," I guess the headline is wrong

 

[Endymio]

Putting ai agents in a Google search doesn't mean millions of farmers are "using AI".

"...About half of farmers and ranchers regularly use artificial intelligence tools to support their operations, according to a report from the agricultural marketing firm MorganMyers and Ag Access, an agricultural market researcher..."

"Real-world studies [of AI use in agricultural] consistently report 30–50 % water savings and 20–30 % yield improvements compared to conventional methods...."

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772375525002151

"AI dramatically reduces pesticide use by shifting farming from blanket spraying to "micro-spraying" .. Instead of treating entire fields, smart machines spot exactly which plants are sick or have weeds. By only spraying chemicals where needed, farmers cut pesticide use by 50% to 90%...."

6.1K views · 20 reactions | AI Robots Enable Precision Spraying to Reduce Pesticide Use and Costs Niqo Robotics is an AI-driven agri-tech enterprise redefining pesticide application through precision spraying. Founded by engineer Jaisimha Rao, the

AI Robots Enable Precision Spraying to Reduce Pesticide Use and Costs Niqo Robotics is an AI-driven agri-tech enterprise redefining pesticide application through precision spraying. Founded by...

www.facebook.com

"Ag scientists testify to House: AI is revolutionizing agriculture by improving crop health, increasing yields and accelerating research...."

https://www.farmprogress.com/technology/ai-in-agriculture-boosting-crop-yields-and-fighting-pests-with-advanced-technology

"How AI is revolutionizing farming"​

https://www.weforum.org/stories/food-water-air/ai-agricultural-intelligence-revolutionize-farming/

AI is only as good as it's data set, and the internet is full of misinformation. Not a good combo.

For the ten-thousandth time: free public chatbots are **not** the entirety of AI. By far the best results in agriculture (or any other field) come from specialized-purpose AI moels, specifically trained on data for that sector.

 

[Alpine7995]

This illustrates the most dangerous thing about AI hallucinations: they don't need to be wrong very often. They just need to be convincingly right ten times before being catastrophically wrong once.

 

[airbornex]

AI is fantastic for producing a list of things to investigate. It becomes considerably less fantastic when the next step involves chemicals, medicine, money, or 25 acres of something you depend on for a living.

 

[GTvon]

Yep. Definitely taking all our jobs.

Your job is lying to farmers?

 

[GTvon]

"...About half of farmers and ranchers regularly use artificial intelligence tools to support their operations, according to a report from the agricultural marketing firm MorganMyers and Ag Access, an agricultural market researcher..."

"Real-world studies [of AI use in agricultural] consistently report 30–50 % water savings and 20–30 % yield improvements compared to conventional methods...."

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772375525002151

"AI dramatically reduces pesticide use by shifting farming from blanket spraying to "micro-spraying" .. Instead of treating entire fields, smart machines spot exactly which plants are sick or have weeds. By only spraying chemicals where needed, farmers cut pesticide use by 50% to 90%...."

6.1K views · 20 reactions | AI Robots Enable Precision Spraying to Reduce Pesticide Use and Costs Niqo Robotics is an AI-driven agri-tech enterprise redefining pesticide application through precision spraying. Founded by engineer Jaisimha Rao, the

AI Robots Enable Precision Spraying to Reduce Pesticide Use and Costs Niqo Robotics is an AI-driven agri-tech enterprise redefining pesticide application through precision spraying. Founded by...

www.facebook.com

"Ag scientists testify to House: AI is revolutionizing agriculture by improving crop health, increasing yields and accelerating research...."

https://www.farmprogress.com/technology/ai-in-agriculture-boosting-crop-yields-and-fighting-pests-with-advanced-technology

"How AI is revolutionizing farming"​

https://www.weforum.org/stories/food-water-air/ai-agricultural-intelligence-revolutionize-farming/

For the ten-thousandth time: free public chatbots are **not** the entirety of AI. By far the best results in agriculture (or any other field) come from specialized-purpose AI moels, specifically trained on data for that sector.

They even use self driving seeders, plows, harvesters and weeders among other AI tools and machines.

 

[user556]

For the ten-thousandth time: free public chatbots are **not** the entirety of AI. By far the best results in agriculture (or any other field) come from specialized-purpose AI moels, specifically trained on data for that sector.

But chatbots is the sole definition of AI in this context, and pretty much all online conversations. LLM == chatbot == AI here.

 

[Endymio]

But chatbots is the sole definition of AI in this context

Wrong. The context is a tech website purportedly attempting to educate and inform readers. Instead, we see what appears to be a concerted, purposeful effort to mislead readers and to drum up opposition to an entire field of technology.

...and pretty much all online conversations. LLM == chatbot == AI here.

Again: only to the uneducated and misinformed. LLMs -- especially free public ones -- aren't even the entirety of generative AI, and they are dwarfed by the far more mature field of predictive AI.