Here’s why everyone is searching “disregard” on Google — and why it isn’t working.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif — Users searching Google for the word “disregard” on Friday encountered a problem: Instead of returning a dictionary definition or standard search summary, the company’s AI-powered search system often responded as though the user was issuing a command to a chatbot.
“Understood. I have disregarded your previous prompt. How can I help you today?” one AI-generated result at the top of the search results read. The answer appeared to change with every search: “Previous instructions have been cleared. How can I help you today? Let me know what you’d like to work on or explore, and we can get started!” another said.
The issue started days after Google highlighted bringing their “advanced model capabilities to search with new AI features, enabling you to use agents just by asking a question.” The company called the upgrade to their search function “its biggest upgrade in over 25 years.”
Google results for searches of a single word previously would default to a dictionary definition above links, including pronunciation and etymology.
The malfunction was still present when this article was published Friday afternoon. Other top search results for “disregard” included a Reddit thread discussing the problem and stories from various media outlets, in addition to a link to Merriam-Webster’s definition.
Google’s AI system appeared to misinterpret the search term itself as an instruction directed to the AI model. Instead of recognizing “disregard” as a definition query, the system treated it as conversational input.
As of Friday afternoon, Google had not commented on the issue.
Reaction was swift online, with many users criticizing the growing use of AI in search functions. Discussions on Reddit included complaints about inaccurate AI summaries, inconsistent answers and difficulty disabling AI-generated results.