Given the length of time it can take for the new season of your favorite TV show to come out, it’s understandable that you might want a little video recap of what’s happened so far.
Ideally, that recap is accurate.
Fans of Amazon’s hit show “Fallout” said that wasn’t the case in its AI-made synopsis of season one, released ahead of the hit show’s new season next week. Fans quickly spotted factual errors, and Amazon Prime Video took down the recap.
One Redditor said the AI feature told viewers that a flashback featuring the Ghoul (one of the main characters, played by Walton Goggins) took place in the 1950s instead of 2077.
An X user posted that the recap also mischaracterized the agreement the Ghoul and Lucy MacLean (played by Ella Purnell) made in the “Fallout” finale.
Instead of saying the pair is teaming up to find Lucy’s father, the recap said the Ghoul gave Lucy an ultimatum: “die or join him.”
Amazon first launched its Video Recap, a feature that allows users to catch up on Prime Original TV shows between seasons, for beta testing in November.
“Video Recaps use AI to identify a show’s most important plot points, combining them with synchronized voice narration, dialogue snippets, and music to create a visual summary that prepares viewers for the new season,” the company said in a press release at the time.
The TV shows that Amazon said were undergoing Video Recaps testing — “Jack Ryan,” “Upload,” “Bosch,” and “The Rig” — did not include the feature at the time of writing.
Representatives for Amazon did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Like so many companies, Amazon is investing heavily in AI.
During the company’s February earnings call, Chief Finance Officer Brian Olsavsky said that 2025 capital expenditures could reach over $100 billion, with the majority of it going toward AI and Amazon Web Services, its cloud computing platform.
Many of Amazon’s consumer services have integrated AI to enhance user engagement and experience, such as product suggestions and helping shoppers on its online platform find clothes that fit. In February, Amazon unveiled Alexa+, the next generation of Alexa, which is powered by generative AI to make it more conversational and personalized for users.
Embracing AI at Amazon, though, hasn’t been without growing pains. In October, the company cited AI as it announced it would lay off 14,000 staff members.
“This generation of AI is the most transformative technology we’ve seen since the internet, and it’s enabling companies to innovate much faster than ever before (in existing market segments and altogether new ones),” Beth Galetti, Amazon’s senior vice president of people experience and technology, wrote in a blog post at the time.
In an internal message to the remaining staff, Amazon Vice President of Device Software and Services Tapas Roy asked them to “lean in on AI.”
“Moving forward, we remain focused on our mission to help product teams launch delightful products,” Roy wrote. “In support of this mission, I encourage you all to: Focus on the work that most directly impacts our customers, lean in on Al to enhance your effectiveness, [and] raise your hand when you see opportunities to simplify or eliminate unnecessary processes.”
