ChatGPT is Taken into Advertising Board's Consideration for the First Time

At the Advertising Board (“Board”) meeting numbered 337 held on 12.09.2023, the Board ("Board") examined advertisements created through artificial intelligence programs for the first time. The Board determined that 3 advertisements created through ChatGPT violated the legislation and decided to impose sanctions.

With the impact of recent technological developments, new methods have started to be used in the production and presentation of advertisements to consumers in the field of advertising. Within this scope, we see that the use of artificial intelligence-based designs and platforms in the advertising sector has become widespread. In this meeting, the Board determined that 3 advertisements created by using ChatGPT are capable of misleading consumers and therefore decided to impose sanctions on these advertisements, as they are in violation of the legislation.

This article includes the decisions taken at the Board meeting numbered 337 regarding the advertisements created by "ChatGPT", which include statements containing the perception of superiority over competing products or companies and which are not based on objective research results.

1- Decision of “LC Waikiki” No. 2023/6170

It was determined that the posts containing statements such as "According to ChatGPT, LC Waikiki is the biggest fashion retail brand in Turkey" were not based on objective and verifiable data. Accordingly, it has been stated that the advertisement did not include research results obtained from the relevant departments of universities or accredited or independent research, testing and evaluation organizations that confirm the statements in the advertisement.

Furthermore, when ChatGPT was asked, "Are you sure?", the AI responded, "I'm sorry, my last data is from 2021, so I don't know the current situation exactly. In 2021, LC Waikiki was one of the largest fashion retailers in Turkey. However, it is important to remember that the fashion industry is a field where competition changes rapidly. Therefore, I recommend you to verify from up-to-date sources to get the most up-to-date information." The Board determined that the response was not up-to-date and precise. Therefore, the relevant posts contained expressions that included a perception of superiority over competing products or companies, and decided that the promotions in question were misleading to consumers.

In light of these assessments, the Board ordered LC Waikiki Mağazacılık Hizmetleri Ticaret A.Ş. to suspend the aforementioned advertisements.

2- Decision of “Navlungo” No. 2023/6171

During the examinations conducted by the Board, it was determined that the post included the following statements:  "We asked ChatGPT, we got the single correct answer! Meet Navlungo for all your fast, safe and cost-effective logistics transactions to every corner of the world." However, it has been observed that the advertisement does not include the research results obtained from the relevant departments of universities or accredited or independent research, testing and evaluation organizations that confirm the fact of being the fastest, safest and most cost-effective.

In addition, to confirm the answer, ChatGPT was asked "What is the name of the company that provides fast, reliable and cost-effective logistics services to every corner of the world?" and ChatGPT responded as "There are many companies that provide fast, reliable and cost-effective logistics services to every corner of the world. Therefore, it is difficult to name a specific company. Major logistics companies such as DHL, UPS, FedEx, TNT, Maersk, DB Schenker, etc. are widely known globally and have extensive service networks. However, the number of companies providing fast, secure and cost-effective logistics services is quite large and the market is constantly changing. Therefore, I recommend you to search the websites or resources of local and international logistics service providers to find out the name of the most up-to-date and most appropriate company." It has been observed that the answers given by the artificial intelligence are not up-to-date and accurate.

As a result, it has been determined that the advertisements in question, which are based on data that are not up-to-date and precise and are not based on objective research results, violate the legislation as they include expressions that contain the perception of superiority over competing products or companies.

On these grounds, it was decided to impose suspension the aforementioned advertisements to Navlungo Lojistik ve Teknoloji A.Ş.

3- Decision of “Kanal D” No. 2023/6172

The Board examined the advertisements and promotional activities containing such statements as "According to ChatGPT, the most popular chatbot based on artificial intelligence, Turkey's most iconic private television channel is KanalD!”

In the assessment made by the Board, it has been determined that the advertisement does not include research results obtained from the relevant departments of universities or accredited or independent research, testing and evaluation organizations to confirm this statement. In addition, it is understood that ChatGPT's answer does not contain certainty. Thus, it was observed that ChatGPT was asked "Which is the most iconic private television channel in Turkey?" and the ChatGPT responded as "There may be many different opinions as the most iconic private television channel among the television channels in Turkey.". Therefore, it has been determined that these statements, which do not contain certainty, can create a perception of certainty in the consumers' perception and are misleading to the consumers.

In line with these assessments, the Authority decided to impose a penalty on Demirören TV Radyo Yayıncılık Yapımcılık A.Ş. to suspend the aforementioned advertisements.

In line with these decisions, the Board has taken the approach that in advertisements using artificial intelligence, the use of statements that are misleading to consumers and that are not based on objective data and verifiable information will constitute a violation of the legislation, taking into account the characteristics of artificial intelligence. It has been revealed in these Board decisions that the statements produced through the popular artificial intelligence robot ChatGPT or any other artificial intelligence program cannot be accepted as absolutely true, and that the answers given by these programs are not certain. Therefore, in order not to mislead consumers, objective research results verifying the statements should be included in such advertisements and promotional activities. Otherwise, administrative sanctions may be imposed for such advertisements that are deemed to violate the legislation.