Dutch Study Finds All Tested AI Assistants Recommend Unlicensed Gambling Operators

A Dutch study published this month tested 10 AI assistants and determined that every one named at least one unlicensed operator. Some of the assistants incorrectly presented illegal brands as licensed. These results follow a UK investigation from March that showed widely used chatbots directing users to offshore gambling sites operating outside the GamStop self-exclusion scheme.

Ben Head, COO at BetGoodwin, detailed the competitive harm to licensed operators. “For a lot of people, the first place they go to ask where to bet is their AI assistant,” Head said. “If those tools are treating unlicensed sites and licensed ones as the same, or even calling them legit, then the black market gets free distribution that no licensed operator could ever afford.”

Head identified his primary concern as the marketing approach. No ID checks and faster payouts are presented as advantages. Those checks constitute the protections licensed operators maintain for customer wellbeing and safety.

Licensed operators invest substantial resources in affordability checks and self-exclusion through GamStop. This compliance leaves them competing against sites that skip such measures entirely. The same AI tools customers use daily now recommend the non-compliant alternatives.

Responsibility for Correction and Resulting Industry Risks

Head stated that AI platforms should meet the same standards as search engines and social media on illegal gambling. “Checking a brand against the regulator’s licence register is a really simple step, and there’s no reason these tools can’t do it before recommending a site to users,” he said. The industry holds a role as well. Operators should monitor how AI tools describe their brand and report unlicensed recommendations so regulators obtain required evidence.

Every player who experiences problems on an unlicensed site risks losing trust in online gambling overall. This affects every licensed operator. Unlicensed sites can compromise personal and financial information, expose users to scams or identity theft, and deliver malware that allows hackers to access or damage devices. As reported by G3 Newswire, these patterns hand the black market an unearned customer pipeline while regulated firms absorb compliance costs.

Reporting: G3 Newswire

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