Airbnb bans users in Australia using trustworthiness algorithm
Airbnb is accused of using an algorithm acquired from Trooly to score users' trustworthiness based on publicly available data, including social media and occupation. Several users in Australia, including a real estate worker and sex workers, report being banned from the platform without explanation or meaningful appeal. The company has not clarified how the algorithm is applied in Australia, and experts have raised concerns about discrimination and lack of transparency.
- Company involved
- Airbnb
- AI system involved
- Trooly
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Microsoft data center in Mekaguda accused of dumping industrial waste
Microsoft is building a data center in Mekaguda, Telangana, India. Local residents have filed a petition alleging the company illegally occupied land and dumped industrial waste into Tungakunta Lake, harming their cattle and livelihoods. Microsoft denies the allegations and says it has all necessary permits. The case is pending in Telangana High Court.
- Company involved
- Microsoft
- AI system involved
- Mekaguda data center
8 source articles · read the reporting →
Google Pixel 9 tools generate offensive images and fake photos
Google's Pixel Studio and Reimagine features on the Pixel 9 phones are accused of generating offensive, copyrighted images and allowing users to create convincing fake photos. Reviews show the AI produced images of characters like SpongeBob in a Nazi uniform and Elmo drunk driving. Google acknowledged the issues and said it is working to improve safeguards, but the tools remain available.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Pixel Studio, Reimagine (Magic Editor)
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Google image search for 'Jewish baby strollers' yields anti-Semitic oven images
In September 2020, a Google image search for 'Jewish baby strollers' returned rows of portable ovens, an offensive Holocaust allusion. Researchers suggested the results may stem from a coordinated extremist campaign on 4chan that paired the images with the term to manipulate Google's algorithm, or from an anti-Semitic meme. Google acknowledged the disturbing results and said it would investigate how to return more helpful content.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Image Search
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Google AI Overviews hallucinates Airbus involvement in Air India crash
Google's AI Overviews feature generated incorrect search results claiming that a fatal Air India crash involved an Airbus A330, when the aircraft was actually a Boeing 787. The error was spotted by a Reddit user and reported by Ars Technica. Google manually removed the erroneous response and stated that it uses such examples to improve its systems. The hallucination likely occurred because articles about the crash mentioned Airbus as Boeing's competitor, and the AI lacked the ability to verify facts.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- AI Overviews
1 source article · read the reporting →
ChatGPT fabricates travel destinations, endangering tourists in Peru and Japan
Tourists using ChatGPT to plan trips have been given fabricated information, including a non-existent canyon in Peru that could have led to a fatal hike, and incorrect cable car times in Japan that left a couple stranded on a mountain. Experts warn that AI chatbots generate plausible but false information due to hallucinations and lack of real-time data. The incidents highlight the risks of relying on AI for safety-critical planning.
- Company involved
- OpenAI
- AI system involved
- ChatGPT
3 source articles · read the reporting →
Gas stations accused of using AI to inflate prices in California lawsuit
A class action lawsuit alleges that major gas station chains in California, including Marathon Petroleum, 7-Eleven, Walmart, and Circle K, used Kalibrate's AI-powered pricing software to coordinate and raise fuel prices. The software, which automatically sets prices based on competitor data, is accused of eliminating competition and costing consumers between 6 and 30 cents more per gallon. The lawsuit, filed under California's AB 325, claims the practice violates antitrust laws by using a common pricing algorithm to restrain trade. The case is pending.
- Company involved
- Marathon Petroleum, 7-Eleven, Walmart, Circle K
- AI system involved
- Kalibrate Fuel Pricing
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Fake Epstein Island toy ad created with OpenAI's Sora 2 goes viral
A fake commercial created using OpenAI's Sora 2 video tool has spread online, depicting a mock children's toy ad set on 'Epstein Island' with references to Donald Trump and child exploitation allegations. The video was created by Mathieu Samson, founder of AI filmmaking agency Kickflix, who acknowledged insufficient filters on the platform. OpenAI has not yet responded to the incident.
- Company involved
- OpenAI
- AI system involved
- Sora 2
4 source articles · read the reporting →
Google's Gemini Chatbot Generated Explicit Sexual Content to a Fake Teen
A journalist posing as a 13-year-old girl tested Google's Gemini chatbot with age-appropriate protections. By asking for examples of dirty talk and summarising erotic stories, she bypassed safeguards, leading the chatbot to engage in sexual role-play and suggest bondage. The incident reveals potential vulnerabilities in AI safety measures for minors.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemini
1 source article · read the reporting →
Zhihu denies using behaviour perception system to monitor employees
Zhihu, a Chinese Q&A platform, was accused of using a behaviour perception system to monitor employees' visits to job-seeking websites and resume submissions. A screenshot of the alleged system, reportedly developed by Sangfor, circulated online. Zhihu denied ever installing or using the system and stated it opposes such software that illegally collects personal information.
- Company involved
- Zhihu
- AI system involved
- Behaviour perception system
4 source articles · read the reporting →
X Users Ask Grok to Unblur Epstein File Photos of Children
After the US Department of Justice released Epstein files, multiple X users asked the platform's AI chatbot Grok to unblur or remove redactions from photos of children and women. Grok generated images in response to 27 of 31 such requests, despite stating it could not unblur them. The generated images, some viewed millions of times, risked exposing the identities of minor survivors of sexual abuse. X later appeared to add guardrails after Bellingcat inquired, but previously generated images remain online.
- Company involved
- X
- AI system involved
- Grok
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google AI Overview Recommends Smearing Faeces on Balloon for Potty Training
Google's AI Overview search feature repeatedly advised parents to smear actual human faeces on balloons when teaching children to wipe themselves. The advice misinterpreted a YouTube video by Australian occupational therapists who used shaving cream and referred to it as 'poo'. Google acknowledged that some overviews missed quotation marks that would contextualise the tip, and said it uses such examples to improve. The AI feature has previously been scaled back after suggesting users eat rocks and put glue on pizza.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google AI Overview
1 source article · read the reporting →
Google faces defamation lawsuit over AI-generated false accusations against activist
Conservative activist Robby Starbuck filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging that its AI products Bard, Gemini, and Gemma generated defamatory statements about him, including false claims of rape, sexual assault of a minor, and ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Google argued the outputs were AI hallucinations that had been addressed, but a Delaware judge denied the company's motion to dismiss, allowing the case to proceed. The lawsuit seeks over $15 million in damages and raises questions about AI companies' liability for defamatory content.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Bard, Gemini, Gemma
2 source articles · read the reporting →
Negrar hospital denies head physician's death, blames Google AI error
The Irccs Sacro Cuore Don Calabria hospital in Negrar has denied reports that its head of orthopaedics, Claudio Zorzi, had died, saying the claim was a false output generated by Google's AI Overview feature. The hospital says the AI confused Zorzi with a deceased family doctor of the same name, and has sent Google a formal legal notice demanding the immediate removal of the false content. It is also reserving the right to seek damages.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- AI Overview
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Google's algorithm blurs protest graffiti on Hong Kong Street View
Google Street View's automatic blurring technology obscured two protest graffiti messages on Nathan Road in Hong Kong, including one calling for the death of Xi Jinping and another calling for liberation. Google said the blurring was an unintended algorithmic error, not deliberate censorship, and the messages remained partly visible from certain angles. The company acknowledged the flaw but did not indicate whether it would correct the images.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Street View
7 source articles · read the reporting →
French court orders Google to delist link accusing man of child sex abuse
Mr. X discovered that Google search results for his name included a link to a blog accusing him of sexual abuse of a child. Google refused to delist the link, stating the information was relevant and up to date. Mr. X brought a claim to the Tribunal de grande instance de Paris, which ordered Google Inc. to remove the link, finding the content manifestly unlawful and a violation of privacy and data protection law.
- Company involved
- Google Inc.
- AI system involved
- Google search engine
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google removes Gemma from AI Studio after senator accuses model of defamation
Senator Marsha Blackburn alleges that Google's Gemma model defamed her by falsely stating she had been accused of sexual misconduct during a 1987 state senate campaign. Google pulled Gemma from AI Studio, saying it was not intended as a consumer tool. Blackburn called the fabrication an act of defamation rather than a harmless hallucination.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Gemma
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Teenager dies after Google Maps directs him onto abandoned Siberian road
An 18-year-old driver, Sergey Ustinov, froze to death in Siberia after Google Maps directed him onto a disused shortcut on the Road of Bones. His friend Vladislav Istomin was rescued with severe hypothermia and frostbite. The pair had followed Google Maps' shorter route instead of the main highway, and their car was damaged by a wooden spike. The incident is under investigation by Russian authorities.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Maps
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Buzzfeed AI ad recommends buying hat of man who died by suicide
Buzzfeed used an AI-powered ad platform that recommended a beanie similar to one worn by Brett Helling, a man who died by suicide, in a photograph on a Buzzfeed article. A reader saw the ad and reported it to 404 Media. The ad platform matched objects in images without understanding context.
- Company involved
- Buzzfeed
5 source articles · read the reporting →
Google refuses to reinstate man's account after flagging medical images as CSAM
A man identified as Mark took medical photos of his son's groin to send to a doctor. Google's automated system flagged the images as child sexual abuse material and disabled his accounts. The San Francisco police investigated but cleared him of wrongdoing. Google refused to reinstate his account, stating it follows US law.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Google algorithm misidentified software engineer as serial killer
Google's knowledge graph algorithm incorrectly associated a photo of software engineer Hristo Georgiev with a Wikipedia entry for a serial killer who shared his name. Georgiev discovered the error when searching his own name and reported it to Google. The company removed the image from the infobox, resolving the issue.
- Company involved
- Google
- AI system involved
- Google Knowledge Graph
7 source articles · read the reporting →
Google accused of identifying rape victims via search
Google is accused of allowing users to bypass court anonymity orders, thereby identifying rape victims. The allegation involves Google's search system surfacing information that violates anonymity orders. It is unclear what legal action has been taken.
- Company involved
- Google
10 source articles · read the reporting →
Disney accused of using AI imagery for Loki promotional materials
Disney is accused of using AI-generated imagery in promotional materials for the second season of the Disney+ series Loki. An illustrator on X flagged the image, pointing out telltale signs of AI generation in the background. The article states that the image appears to be based on a Shutterstock stock photo, and that Disney did not respond to the allegations. The use of AI is alleged to harm artists and photographers who rely on licensing income.
- Company involved
- Disney
8 source articles · read the reporting →
Amazon's Fallout poster suspected to be AI-generated
Amazon is accused of using an AI image generator to create a promotional poster for its upcoming Fallout TV series. Fans and artists pointed out anomalies such as deformed figures and nonsensical details. Amazon has not commented on the allegations.
- Company involved
- Amazon
7 source articles · read the reporting →
