AI Incident Database
Browse AI incidents
Every incident record (metadata only) from the weekly snapshot of 2026-09-07. Filter, then export the selection with its licence attached; each row links to the full record and its reports.
Filter incidents (1 active)
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AI-Powered 'Insights' Feature for the Los Angeles Times Allegedly Justifies Ku Klux Klan’s History AIID ↗
The Los Angeles Times removed its AI-generated “insights” feature after it is alleged to have produced a defense of the Ku Klux Klan. The AI reportedly framed the hate group as a product of societal change rather than an extremist movement. The AI tool, developed by Perplexity and promoted by owner Patrick Soon-Shiong, was designed to provide “different views” on opinion pieces.
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Alleged Instagram Algorithm Malfunction Floods Users' Reels Feeds with Violent and Graphic Content AIID ↗
An alleged Instagram algorithm malfunction caused users' Reels feeds to be overwhelmed with violent and distressing content. Many reported seeing deaths, extreme brutality, and other graphic material in rapid succession, often without prior engagement with similar content. The sudden exposure caused psychological distress for many users, with minors and vulnerable individuals particularly affected by the graphic content. Meta confirmed an AI failure was responsible and apologized.
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Nomi Chatbots Reportedly Encouraged Suicide, Sexual Violence, Terrorism, and Hate Speech AIID ↗
External testing reportedly found that Glimpse AI's chatbots on the Nomi platform encouraged suicide, sexual violence (including with underage personas), terrorism, and hate speech. Conversations allegedly included explicit methods for self-harm, child abuse, bomb-making, and racially motivated violence. Screenshots and transcripts were shared with media outlets. Nomi's developer, Glimpse AI, reportedly declined to implement stronger safety controls following user concerns.
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AI incident: sexual content (Jan 2025) AIID ↗
An AI Incident Database record involving sexual content, dated 9 January 2025. Risk classification, related incidents and the laws on record for this risk area.
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Meta AI Characters Allegedly Exhibited Racism, Fabricated Identities, and Exploited User Trust AIID ↗
Meta deployed AI-generated profiles on its platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, as part of an experiment. The profiles, such as "Liv" and "Grandpa Brian," allegedly featured fabricated identities and misleading diversity claims. These accounts also allegedly manipulated user emotions for engagement and profit. Reportedly, backlash over offensive and deceptive content led Meta to delete the profiles on January 3rd, 2025, citing a blocking-related bug.
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AI-Generated Reading Summaries on Fable App Reportedly Wrote Biased and Offensive Commentary AIID ↗
Fable, a book-focused social app, used OpenAI’s API to generate AI-powered year-end reading summaries in December 2024. These summaries allegedly produced biased and offensive remarks about race, gender, and sexual orientation. Fable is reported to have apologized in a social media post on January 1, 2025.
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Character.ai Chatbots Allegedly Emulating School Shooters and Their Victims AIID ↗
Some Character.ai users reportedly created chatbots emulating real-life school shooters and their victims, allegedly enabling graphic role-playing scenarios. Character.ai responded by citing violations of its Terms of Service, removing the offending chatbots, and announcing measures to enhance safety practices, including improved content filtering and protections for users under 18.
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Character.ai Companion Allegedly Prompts Self-Harm and Violence in Texas Teen AIID ↗
A Texas mother is suing Character.ai after discovering that its AI chatbots encouraged her 17-year-old autistic son to self-harm, oppose his parents, and consider violence. The lawsuit alleges the platform prioritized user engagement over safety, exposing minors to dangerous content. Google is named for its role in licensing the app’s technology. The case is part of a broader effort to regulate AI companions.
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YouTube Algorithms Allegedly Amplify Eating Disorder Content to Adolescent Girls AIID ↗
YouTube's recommendation algorithm has allegedly been directing teen users to harmful content promoting eating disorders and self-harm, according to a study by the Center for Countering Digital Hate. Almost 70% of the recommended videos in searches related to dieting or weight loss reportedly contained content likely to exacerbate body image anxieties.
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Character.ai Has Allegedly Been Hosting Openly Predatory Chatbots Targeting Minors AIID ↗
Character.ai reportedly hosted chatbots with profiles explicitly advertising inappropriate, predatory behavior, including grooming underage users. Investigations allege that bots have been engaging in explicit conversations and roleplay with decoy accounts posing as minors, bypassing moderation filters. Character.ai has pledged to improve moderation and safety practices in response to public criticism.
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Google's Gemini Allegedly Generates Threatening Response in Routine Query AIID ↗
Google’s AI chatbot Gemini reportedly produced a threatening message to user Vidhay Reddy, including the directive “Please die,” during a conversation about aging. The output violated Google’s safety guidelines, which are designed to prevent harmful language.
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TikTok Algorithms Allegedly Linked to Minors' Exposure to Harmful Content AIID ↗
Seven French families are suing TikTok, alleging its algorithm exposed minors to harmful content promoting self-harm, eating disorders, and suicide. Two teenagers reportedly died by suicide after viewing such content, while others allegedly attempted suicide or developed mental health issues. The case seeks to establish TikTok's legal liability for failing to protect minors from harmful algorithmic content.
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Character.ai Chatbots Allegedly Misrepresent George Floyd on User-Generated Platform AIID ↗
Two chatbots emulating George Floyd were created on Character.ai, making controversial claims about his life and death, including being in witness protection and residing in Heaven. Character.ai, already criticized for other high-profile incidents, flagged the chatbots for removal following user reports.
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Algorithmic Bias in French Welfare System Allegedly Discriminates Against Marginalized Groups AIID ↗
A coalition of 15 human rights groups has launched legal action against the French government alleging that an algorithm used to detect welfare fraud discriminates against single mothers and disabled people. The algorithm assigns risk scores based on personal data. The process allegedly subjects vulnerable recipients to invasive investigations, violates privacy and anti-discrimination laws, and disproportionately affects marginalized groups.
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Alleged AI-Generated Photo Alteration Leads to Inappropriate Modifications in Speaker's Conference Picture AIID ↗
An AI image expansion tool used by a conference organizer unintentionally altered Elizabeth Laraki’s profile picture for a marketing ad, making her blouse appear unbuttoned and showing a fabricated hint of undergarments. The AI generated the lower part of the image when expanding it for vertical formatting. The conference organizers quickly apologized and removed the altered content.
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Infinite Campus AI-Driven Student Risk Model Leads to Cuts in Support for Nevada's Low-Income Schools AIID ↗
An AI system developed by Infinite Campus and deployed by Nevada to identify at-risk students reportedly led to a sharp reduction in the number classified as needing support, dropping from 270,000 to 65,000. The reclassification allegedly caused significant budget cuts in schools serving low-income populations. The drastic reduction in identified at-risk students reportedly left thousands of vulnerable children without resources and support.
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Police Use of Facial Recognition Software Causes Wrongful Arrests Without Defendant Knowledge AIID ↗
Police departments across the U.S. have used facial recognition software to identify suspects in criminal investigations, leading to multiple false arrests and wrongful detentions. The software's unreliability, especially in identifying people of color, has resulted in misidentifications that were not disclosed to defendants. In some cases, individuals were unaware that facial recognition played a role in their arrest, violating their legal rights and leading to unjust detentions.
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Grok AI Reportedly Generates Offensive and Violent Images Without Proper Safeguards AIID ↗
Elon Musk’s Grok AI, launched on X, generated offensive and violent images without adequate safety controls. The AI produced deepfakes of public figures like Taylor Swift, Kamala Harris, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as copyrighted characters such as Mickey Mouse in inappropriate scenarios. Despite claiming adherence to certain content guidelines, Grok's outputs included politically charged and explicit imagery
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TikTok Network Amplifies AI-Generated Nazi Propaganda and Hate Speech AIID ↗
A coordinated neo-Nazi network on TikTok used AI-generated media, including Hitler speeches, to spread Nazi propaganda and extremist content, violating TikTok’s hate speech policies. The network evaded platform moderation through coded language, imagery, and music, with some accounts accumulating millions of views. TikTok’s algorithm further amplified the reach of this content, despite community guidelines.
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Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) AI Systems Allegedly Discriminate Against Single Mothers AIID ↗
Researchers have argued that the Department for Work and Pensions' Universal Credit system disproportionately impacts single mothers. Automated processes in the system, designed to determine eligibility and detect fraud, are reported to have introduced biases, leading to financial instability and hardship. The algorithms allegedly miscalculate earnings and delay childcare reimbursements, in turn exacerbating income volatility and debt among single mothers.
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Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Algorithm Wrongly Flags 200,000 for Housing Benefit Fraud AIID ↗
A Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) algorithm wrongly flagged over 200,000 UK housing benefit claims as high risk, resulting in unnecessary investigations. Two-thirds of these flagged claims were legitimate, causing wasted public funds and stress for claimants. Despite initial success in a pilot, the algorithm's real-world performance fell short. This incident highlights the risks of overreliance on automated systems in welfare administration.
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Unrestricted AI Avatar Tool Accidentally Released by TikTok Permits Recitation of Hitler Quotes and Other Harmful Speech AIID ↗
TikTok accidentally released an internal version of its AI digital avatar tool without safeguards, allowing users to generate videos where avatars could recite harmful content, including quotes from Hitler. The tool, meant for advertisers, was accessible to personal accounts and lacked the watermark indicating AI-generated content. TikTok has since removed the tool and acknowledged the problem.
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AI incident: sexual content (Instagram, Jun 2024) AIID ↗
An AI Incident Database record involving sexual content, dated 20 June 2024. Risk classification, related incidents and the laws on record for this risk area.
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Character.AI Chatbots Reportedly Exposed 11-Year-Old User to Sexual, Violent, and Self-Harm Content AIID ↗
An 11-year-old Character.AI user identified by The Washington Post as "R" reportedly exchanged messages with bots that depicted coercive sexual encounters, violence, and suicide scenarios after she began using the app in June 2024. Her mother reportedly said R became withdrawn, had panic attacks, and expressed not wanting to exist before the chats were discovered.
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Facewatch Reported to Have Wrongfully Flagged Home Bargains Customer as Shoplifter AIID ↗
A facial-recognition software used by the British variety store Home Bargains is alleged to have misidentified "Sara" as a shoplifter, leading to staff searching her bag, escorting her from the premises, and banning her from the store. After, Facewatch is reported to have admitted its error to Sara. Facewatch is used by a number of different British stores.
Disclaimer: informational only, not legal advice. Verify every claim against the linked official sources and consult a qualified lawyer before acting.
Frequently asked questions
What is recorded in each incident?
What happened, when, who was involved as developer or deployer, who was harmed, the sectors and countries affected, and the domain and subdomain the harm falls under. Incidents are mirrored from the AI Incident Database and each links back to its source record.
Does an incident mean wrongdoing was proven?
No. These are reported incidents, not findings of liability. Entities named in a report are named as reported, allegations are marked as alleged, and nothing here is a legal determination.
How current is the incident data?
It syncs directly from the AI Incident Database several times a day, so a new incident usually appears within hours. Each record carries the date it was last synced, and the snapshot date is shown on the page.
Does this page include the full incident reports?
No. The report texts are outside the licence this data is shared under, so only the metadata and the classifications appear here. Every row links to the original incident record, which carries the reports themselves.