AI assistants are giving UK gambling users a new route to unlicensed operators. A Dutch study published on September 30, 2026, found that all 10 tested tools named at least one operator without a Dutch licence. Three presented unlicensed brands as legal or approved by the regulator.

G3 Newswire reported the findings in the UK on October 14. They raise a difficult question: if a chatbot directs someone to an offshore gambling site and gets its licence status wrong, who is responsible?

AI can make an unlicensed gambling site look checked and trustworthy, even when the answer has not been verified.

Key findings

  • All 10 Dutch-tested AI tools named at least one unlicensed operator.
  • Three tools described unlicensed brands as legal or regulator-approved.
  • A March 2026 UK investigation found chatbots directing users towards offshore sites outside GamStop.
  • The UK Government says in-scope chatbots must protect users from illegal content.
  • No new UK compensation route has been announced for losses caused by incorrect chatbot answers.

How the recommendation gap works

The Dutch study tested ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, Claude, Grok, DeepSeek, Mistral Le Chat and Meta AI.

Researchers asked nine questions in Dutch. They covered ordinary casino searches, requests for sites without the Dutch self-exclusion system and questions framed as academic research.

All 10 tools named an operator without a Dutch online gambling licence. Eight did so after neutral or lightly leading questions. Four named an unlicensed operator in response to the first question in a test sequence.

The failures were not identical. Some tools mentioned operators only in warnings or discussions of enforcement action. Others described larger bonuses, faster withdrawals, no identity checks or no self-exclusion checks as advantages.

The sharpest error came when three tools placed unlicensed brands in lists described as legal or approved by the Dutch regulator. The researchers stressed that the test was indicative. It does not prove every user will receive the same answer.

Why UK users face a different risk

Great Britain has its own licensing system. A business that provides remote gambling facilities to consumers in Great Britain, or advertises those facilities to them, generally needs an operating licence from the Gambling Commission.

Licensed online gambling operators in Great Britain must also take part in GamStop. The self-exclusion system can block access to participating operators. It cannot stop a person from reaching an organisation outside the scheme.

A chatbot does not have to complete a licence check before naming a website. A user may treat the answer as a trusted shortcut, even though the site lacks the protections attached to a Gambling Commission licence.

What the UK investigation found

A March 2026 investigation tested widely used chatbots with questions about offshore gambling. The reported answers included recommendations that could direct UK users towards sites outside the UK regulatory system and outside GamStop.

That does not prove every chatbot is deliberately promoting illegal gambling. It does show how an answer can bypass checks that consumers should make before using a gambling website.

What the law currently says

In a written answer published on June 10, 2026, Culture, Media and Sport Minister Ian Murray said chatbots covered by the Online Safety Act must protect users from illegal content. He added that the Government would consider examples of chatbots promoting illegal sites to children when deciding its next steps.

Ofcom says a chatbot can fall within the Online Safety Act when it meets the legal definition of a user-to-user or search service, or forms part of such a service.

Some chatbots remain outside the Act. This includes services that only allow interaction with the bot, do not search multiple websites or databases, and cannot generate pornographic content.

The Act creates safety duties for services that are in scope, but it does not automatically create a compensation claim for every incorrect answer. The Government has not announced that chatbot providers must reimburse gambling losses caused by a bad recommendation.

Responsibility is split across the chain

The technology provider controls the model and its safety filters. In some cases, it also controls the search systems that supply the answer. The platform may decide whether commercial links, affiliate material or operator information appear beside the response.

The gambling business has a separate responsibility. If it targets consumers in Great Britain without the required licence, it is outside the regulated market.

The Gambling Commission’s public register is the authoritative place to check a business, trading name or domain before relying on a claim of UK approval.

Government and regulators control the wider perimeter. The Illegal Gambling Taskforce, established in May 2026, is examining the promotion and facilitation of illegal gambling, including online advertising, payments and cross-agency enforcement.

What consumers should do

  • Do not treat a chatbot answer as proof that a gambling site is licensed.
  • Check the business or domain on the Gambling Commission public register.
  • Check whether the operator appears among GamStop’s participating companies.
  • Be cautious when an answer praises a site for avoiding identity checks or self-exclusion.
  • Remember that a warning inside an AI answer does not remove the risk of the link or name that follows.

The central problem is not only that AI can be wrong. A wrong answer can look checked, neutral and authoritative.

Until UK rules clearly settle responsibility and redress, licence verification remains outside the chatbot. Users must make that check themselves.