What happened

Customers started calling and arriving at Stefanina’s Pizzeria demanding non-existent deals hallucinated by Google's AI Overviews system, such as “buy one, get one for $4” or “large pizzas for the price of a small”.

The family-run business had to calm irate patrons and took to social media to warn them they would not honour the false deals and to not trust Google's system.

The fracas is reported to have disrupted operations, wasted staff time, and reduced efficiency. It is also likely to have damaged customer trust in the pizzeria.

Google refused to acknowledge or otherwise comment on the incident.

Why it happened

The fabricated offers resulted from an AI “hallucination,” where the system confidently generated false information based on incomplete or mismatched data from web sources. 

The issue was exacerbated by a lack of transparency in how Google's Overviews AI system compiles and presents information, with owners unable to control or verify what Google AI published about their pizzeria.