Farmer ends up killing 25 acres of his crops after trusting AI on herbicide advice

Date:
Wed, 12 Aug 2026 18:20:00 +0000

Description:
Relying on incorrect and unverified information from an AI chatbot resulted
in a farmer in China destroying his crops.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter A 67-year-old farmer in
Chuzhou, China used an AI to find a solution to deal with weeds and pests The chatbot provided incorrect information which the farmer did not verify 24.7 acres of sesame seedlings were inadvertently destroyed A farmer in the
Chinese city area of Chuzhou has learned the expensive cost of relying on unverified AI responses to problems, after its advice destroyed almost 25 acres of crop. The 67-year-old, who had previously expressed misgivings about using AI, was provided with incorrect information by an unnamed chatbot , and failed to verify it before proceeding.

The response to the query concerning the composition of a pest control agent
was taken at face value, with expensive consequences for the farmer, known
as Wu. A destructive mix of chemicals was recommended by the chatbot, destroying crops as well as weeds and pests, raising questions once more
about whether people should blindly trust the responses from AI chatbots. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here: An AI instructs Wus problem concerned weeds and pests threatening his sesame crop, planted across 24.7 acres.

Having being initially wary of AI chatbots, his recent experiences had given him some confidence in the technology, he told a local reporter, so asked for help. You may like Researchers warn on AI election errors How data poisoning can break more than just AI models Google pulls Nano Banana from Google Earth after one day

The response from the chatbot was to mix high-efficiency flupyrimethalin and flusulfasulfaether to kill the weeds, and mix it with thiamethoxazine and methyl salt a combination that destroyed the sesame seedlings overnight.

Simply verifying the response with an AI-free search, or contacting agricultural technicians, would have avoided the destruction of the crop. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro
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Speaking to local press, Wu said: If you spray it, the next day the seedlings wont survive. Both the grass and the seedlings will die, and the seedlings will die even faster.

Wu returned to the AI to ask what had gone wrong. The main problem with the chemical mix (a practice that should never be attempted without knowledge)
was the inclusion of flusulfasulfaether, something that experts have confirmed.

The chemical is used against broadleaf weeds, but sesame is widely classified as a broadleaf plant. Targeted spraying is also recommended for the chemical, but Wus approach was to spray the entire field. What to read next Telling ChatGPT to distrust itself helped stop its hallucinations Is bulldozing
homes, seizing land, harming the climate, and replacing workers really worth everyone having an AI agent? How asking an AI agent to book a gym class took
a turn for the worst Verification, please Errors, mistakes, incorrect information, vibe citations , and hallucinations are all risks of using a chatbot for answers or generating material. LLM and chatbot developers know this, and spend a lot of time fixing these issues. As a result, AI tools invariably come with a warning.

In this case, Wus chatbot displayed the warning: AI generation may be incorrect, please verify. Wus failure to verify has lost him almost 25 acres of crop, and potentially the loss of the lands use for at least a season, if not longer.

All material produced by an AI should be verified, whether a simple answer or a solution to a workflow. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/farmer-ends-up-killing-25-acres-of-his-crops-aft er-trusting-ai-on-herbicide-advice


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