Michael Schumacher: Family wins £170,000 compensation for AI ‘interview’

Michael Schumacher’s family has been awarded £170,026 (€200,000) compensation from the publishers of a German magazine that published an AI-generated ‘interview’ with the F1 legend.

German gossip magazine Die Aktuelle claimed to have had an exclusive interview with the seven-time world champion, running a picture with the headline “Michael Schumacher, the first interview” on its front cover in April 2023.

An accompanying strapline read: “it sounded deceptively real”. Inside, it was revealed the quotes had been produced by AI.

The editor of Die Aktuelle was sacked two days after the article was published, while Funke media group issued an apology to Schumacher’s family.

Schumacher, 55, has not been seen in public since he suffered severe head injuries in a skiing accident during a family holiday in the French Alps in December 2013.

His family have kept updates about his health strictly private, with only a select few people allowed to visit him.

Speaking in the 2021 Netflix documentary Schumacher, the Ferrari great’s wife Corinna said: "Michael is here. Different, but he's here, and that gives us strength, I find. He still shows me how strong he is every day.

"We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he's comfortable. And to simply make him feel our family, our bond.

"And no matter what, I will do everything I can. We all will. We're trying to carry on as a family, the way Michael liked it and still does. And we are getting on with our lives.

"'Private is private', as he always said. It's very important to me that he can continue to enjoy his private life as much as possible. Michael always protected us, and now we are protecting Michael."