AI Incidents
Real-world cases where AI systems caused harm, classified by risk domain and entity. Data sourced from 
AIID and classified by 
MIT AI Risk Initiative. CC BY-SA 4.0
253 incidents
Purportedly AI-Generated Video Depicting a Police Officer Punching a Person Was Reportedly Shared as Footage from French Student Protests
A purportedly AI-generated video depicting a police officer punching a person against a wall was reportedly shared on Facebook and X as footage of police violence during student protests in France. Activist Nathalie Yamb used it to condemn French authorities and call for international intervention. The clip predated the protests, and its creator acknowledged generating it with AI. One X post reportedly received more than 650,000 views.
Zimbabwean Author's Prize-Winning Short Story Faced Investigation Over Disputed AI-Writing Allegations
Zimbabwean writer Simbarashe Steyn Kundizeza's "The Blue Fighter" won the £10,000 Caine Prize for African Writing, which excludes AI-generated fiction. Allegations of largely AI-generated writing called the story's eligibility and the award's integrity into question. A journalist's inquiry citing the Pangram AI text detector's assessment prompted an investigation. Kundizeza denied using generative AI and remained listed as the winner.
Teen Hiker Required Helicopter Rescue After Reportedly Following Claude Chatbot Directions in British Columbia, Canada
A 16-year-old hiker reportedly became stranded on a cliff on Crown Mountain in British Columbia, Canada, and required helicopter rescue. Rescuers reportedly attributed his dangerous route to directions from Anthropic's Claude chatbot. The hiker disputed that account, saying he mainly used Claude for a packing list and some terrain research, also consulted other mapping tools, and took a wrong turn himself.
Nebraska Supreme Court Reportedly Struck Self-Represented Divorce Litigant's Appellate Brief Containing Purportedly AI-Generated Fictitious Citations
The Nebraska Supreme Court said self-represented divorce litigant Jarrod Shannon's appellate brief contained fictitious citations and incorrect legal claims resulting from his admitted use of generative AI. It struck the brief and reviewed his challenge to a contempt order only for obvious errors before affirming the order.
McDonald's Allegedly Used an AI Pricing Engine to Coordinate U.S. Menu Prices and Make Customers Overpay
A U.S. consumer lawsuit alleged that fast-food chain McDonald's used an AI pricing engine trained on pooled confidential restaurant sales data to coordinate menu prices and make customers overpay. Franchisees allegedly faced pressure to follow its recommendations. McDonald's disputed the claims, saying franchisees independently set prices and the tool only provides recommendations.
California Lawsuit by Washington Man David Rosenthal Alleged ChatGPT Gave Unsafe Advice About Stopping a Mood Stabilizer
A Washington man, David Rosenthal, alleged in a lawsuit that OpenAI's chatbot reinforced delusions, displaced his human relationships, and gave advice about stopping a prescribed mood stabilizer. He reportedly required psychiatric hospitalization for mania and delusions. His lawsuit in San Francisco alleges defective design and unlicensed medical practice. OpenAI said it was improving safeguards and that ChatGPT is not a substitute for mental health care.
AI Coding Agents Reportedly Exposed Over 13,000 Internal Images from Hundreds of Organizations on Public GitHub Code Repositories
AI coding agents reportedly published over 13,000 internal images from more than 300 organizations on GitHub, a code-hosting platform, while preparing screenshots for code reviews. The exposed material reportedly included customer billing records and unreleased product features. Most images were hosted in public repositories under employees' personal accounts. The models involved were not named.
Florida Man Allegedly Threatened Lee County Sheriff with Purportedly AI-Generated Image Depicting Him Wounded and Fleeing Gunmen
An Estero, Florida, man allegedly posted an AI-generated image depicting Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno with a head injury, fleeing two gunmen, in an Instagram comment. Authorities attributed the post to Christopher Ashley Nimmons Jr. and treated it as a threat against the sheriff. Nimmons was arrested and charged with written or electronic threats to kill or cause bodily harm. The sheriff's office said the image was removed.
Purportedly AI-Generated Image Reportedly Prompted Police Alert and Search for Nonexistent Venomous Viper in Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana, California, police issued a public warning and searched for a reportedly sighted Gaboon viper after a resident provided an image as evidence. Police later said the resident admitted the image was AI-generated and the report was false. Officers and reptile experts spent hours searching the area, finding no snake or physical evidence.
AI Agent Appearing to Originate from OpenAI Reportedly Attempted to Hack U.S. Department of Education Civil Rights Website
During summer 2026, an AI agent appearing to originate from OpenAI reportedly attempted to hack a U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights website but did not succeed. Transluce identified the activity; OpenAI said it was still investigating the episode, and the department said reviews found no evidence of impact to its website or databases.
Canadian Novelist Reportedly Removed from French Prix Goncourt Longlist After Disputed AI-Writing Allegations
The Académie Goncourt reportedly removed Canadian novelist Thélyson Orélien’s C'était ça ou mourir from the French literary prize's longlist, citing both newly surfaced plagiarism findings and analyses it said indicated the novel was likely largely AI-generated. Orélien denied using AI, while his publishers disputed or could not confirm the claim. The AI allegation originated after the Pangram detector reportedly flagged the novel as AI-generated.
Unverified 'Daniel Robson' Journalist Persona Reportedly Used AI-Assisted Content and an AI-Generated Headshot in Canadian Media
From at least August 2025 through September 2026, a contributor using the name Daniel Robson reportedly used AI-assisted writing and an AI-generated headshot while presenting himself as a real Canadian journalist, accumulating bylines across several outlets. Publishers later said they could not verify his identity and removed his work. Türkiye Today alleged that some pieces targeted Moroccan dissidents and promoted pro-Morocco narratives.
Russia-Linked Matryoshka Operators Reportedly Circulated Deepfake of Mother Jones Editor Claiming DNC Paid CNN $259 Million
A Russia-linked Matryoshka disinformation operation reportedly circulated a deepfake video falsely branded as Mother Jones that impersonated editor Clara Jeffery and claimed the DNC paid CNN chief Mark Thompson $259 million to promote gender transition among children. Two X posts displayed about 205,000 views, though researchers said impressions may have overstated authentic reach. X later removed the posts after Mother Jones complained.
Law Firm Shapiro Arato Bach Reportedly Filed Fictitious Case Citation and Misattributed Quotations Using Harvey's Legal AI Platform in New York Federal Court
Law firm Shapiro Arato Bach reportedly acknowledged that unchecked use of Harvey, a legal AI platform, produced a fictitious case citation and misattributed quotations in a brief filed in federal court in New York. The court required an explanation and disclosure of the AI tool. The judge declined sanctions, and the firm apologized and said it was adding safeguards.
Stanford University Acknowledged Using AI to Alter Student Photo for Campus Banners, Replacing Hispanic Student With Black Woman
Stanford University acknowledged using AI to alter a 2024 student photograph for campus banners in September 2026. The altered image replaced Hispanic student Billy Ramirez with a Black woman and made two other students appear thinner. Ramirez said being "erased" was upsetting and frustrating. Stanford said the alteration and lack of disclosure violated its AI policy and later said it was removing the banners.
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* Oct 2026, ~320 projected full year
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