Additionally, Rivers concluded that Moffatt had “no reason” to believe that one part of Air Canada’s website would be accurate and another would not.

Air Canada “does not explain why customers should verify information found in one part of its website in another part of its website,” Rivers wrote.

Ultimately, Rivers ruled that Moffatt was entitled to a partial refund of $650.88 in Canadian dollars off the original fare (approximately $482 US), or $1,640.36 CAD (approximately $1,216 US), as well as additional damages to cover interest on the plane ticket. and Moffatt’s court costs.

Air Canada told Ars that it would comply with the ruling and considered the matter closed.

Air Canada chatbot appears to be disabled

When Ars visited Air Canada’s website on Friday, there appeared to be no chatbot support available, suggesting that Air Canada has disabled the chatbot.

Air Canada did not respond to Ars’ request to confirm whether the chatbot is still part of the airline’s online support offerings.

Last March, Air Canada’s chief information officer, Mel Crocker, told Globe and Mail that the airline had launched the chatbot as an AI “experiment.”

Initially, the chatbot was used to ease the load on Air Canada’s call center when flights experienced unexpected delays or cancellations.

“So in the event of a snowstorm, if you haven’t received your new boarding pass yet and you just want to confirm if you have an available seat on another flight, that’s the kind of thing we can easily manage with AI,” Crocker said Globe and Mail.

Over time, Crocker said, Air Canada hoped the chatbot would “gain the ability to solve even more complex customer service issues,” with the airline’s ultimate goal being to automate every service that doesn’t require ” human contact.”

If Air Canada can use “technology to solve something that can be automated, we will do it,” Crocker said.

Air Canada was apparently so invested in experimenting with AI that Crocker told the Globe and Mail that “Air Canada’s initial investment in customer service AI technology was far greater than the cost of continuing to pay workers to handle simple queries. ” It was worth it, Crocker said, because “the airline believes that investing in automation and machine learning technology will reduce its expenses” and “fundamentally” create “a better customer experience.”

It’s now clear that for at least one person, the chatbot created a more frustrating customer experience.

Experts told Vancouver Sunshine that Air Canada could have successfully avoided liability in Moffatt’s case if its chatbot had warned customers that the information provided by the chatbot might not be accurate.

Because Air Canada apparently failed to take this step, Rivers ruled that “Air Canada failed to take reasonable precautions to ensure the accuracy of its chatbot.”

“It should be obvious to Air Canada that it is responsible for all information on its website,” Rivers wrote. “It doesn’t matter whether the information comes from a static page or a chatbot.”

This story was originally published on Ars Technica.