Lost in the algorithm: Hikers stranded on Mt. Shasta after following Gemini AI's plan

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Set us as preferred In what authorities are calling a “critical misstep,” three hikers relied heavily on Google’s Gemini AI to guide them through a Mt.Shasta summit, leaving them stranded on the mountain’s southeastern flank.

On Saturday, three young novice hikers from Roseville, more than 200 miles south of the mountain, made camp at approximately 8,400 feet and then departed at 3 a.m.the following day with day packs for Mt.

Shasta, according to the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office.In a post on Facebook, the sheriff’s office said, “The men summited at 7:00 pm that evening, well after the recommended turnaround time of 12:00 pm, and descended in the dark.”Officials said that, an hour into their descent, the group called Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch to ask for directions, but eventually wandered off route into Mud Creek Canyon.That evening, one of the hikers fell and suffered a knee injury.The group became stranded in Mud Creek Canyon and were forced to create a small encampment, with little to no shelter, in the steep drainage.

They remained there until the following morning, when they were met by the U.S.Forest Service’s climbing rangers, who provided them with medical aid.The Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Volunteers were deployed to assist, and all three hikers and rescue teams returned to the trailhead without incident, according to sheriff’s officials.

When rescued, one of the men told a sheriff‘s deputy that the group had relied on Google’s Gemini AI for information about the route and what to pack for their trip.“This was a critical misstep, as they were advised by Gemini to bring far less food and water than their group required, especially when their planned 8 hour ascent became a multi-day ordeal,” the sheriff’s office said in the Facebook post.“It is ...