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[ARTICLE · art-91962] src=independent.co.uk ↗ pub= topic=artificial-intelligence verified=true sentiment=↓ negative

Farmer trusted AI for a year before one answer ruined his crop

A 67-year-old farmer in Chuzhou, China, lost 25 acres of sesame crops after following pesticide advice from an AI assistant that recommended the herbicide flufenacet, which destroyed both weeds and seedlings. Agricultural experts confirmed the AI's error, and the farmer admitted to blindly following the chatbot's instructions despite a disclaimer warning of potential inaccuracies. The incident highlights concerns over AI misadvice, following a previous case where a man developed bromide toxicity after ChatGPT suggested using sodium bromide as a salt substitute.

read1 min views1 publishedAug 11, 2026
Farmer trusted AI for a year before one answer ruined his crop
Image: Independent (auto-discovered)
  • A 67-year-old farmer in Chuzhou, China, lost 25 acres of sesame crops overnight after following pesticide advice provided by an AI assistant.
  • Agricultural experts found that the AI recommended using the herbicide flufenacet, which destroyed both the weeds and sesame seedlings.
  • The farmer admitted to blindly following the chatbot's instructions without verifying the information, despite a disclaimer warning that AI output may be inaccurate.
  • The incident highlights growing concerns over AI misadvice, following a previous case where a man developed bromide toxicity after ChatGPT suggested replacing table salt with sodium bromide.
  • Experts and AI developers continue to warn users that AI tools can generate inaccuracies and should not replace professional advice.
source & further reading
independent.co.uk — original article Farmer accidentally kills 25 acres of crops after trusting AI advice Claude will now include invisible marks to show a text was made with AI, Anthropic announces Queen’s Sir Brian May says humanity does not need AI
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