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
1,751 incidents
DoNotPay Allegedly Misrepresented Its AI "Robot Lawyer" Product
DoNotPay was alleged in a class action lawsuit misleading customers and misrepresenting its product as an AI-powered "robot lawyer," citing such as that the product has no law degree, or is supervised by any lawyer.
South African Legal Team Reportedly Relied on Unverified ChatGPT Case Law in Johannesburg Body Corporate Defamation Matter
In a defamation case at the Johannesburg Regional Court, Rodrigues Blignaut Attorneys, representing plaintiff Michelle Parker, reportedly relied on purportedly non-existent legal judgments generated by ChatGPT to help argue their case. Magistrate Arvin Chaitram reportedly found the case names and citations were fictitious, causing a two-month delay. The court issued a punitive costs order and rebuked the plaintiff's legal team for uncritically accepting AI-generated research.
Jackson Township Police in Stark County, Ohio Briefly Detained Driver After Flock Safety Alert Matched Vehicle to Stale Missing-Juvenile Hot-List Entry
In March 2023, Jackson Township police in Ohio briefly detained driver Michael Smith after a Flock Safety license-plate reader matched his vehicle to an NCIC hot-list entry from a missing-juvenile investigation that Cleveland police had closed two weeks earlier. Officers released Smith after confirming the juvenile had already been found. A federal court later held that Flock matched the plate to law-enforcement data but did not create the stale entry.
TikTok User Videos Impersonated Andrew Tate Using AI Voice, Prompting Ban
A TikTok user was reportedly impersonating Andrew Tate, who was banned on the platform, by posting videos featuring an allegedly AI-generated audio of Tate's voice, which prompted his account ban.
UnitedHealth Accused of Deploying Allegedly Flawed AI to Deny Medical Coverage
UnitedHealthcare allegedly used a faulty AI algorithm with a 90% error rate to override doctors' recommendations and deny health coverage. This AI, developed by NaviHealth, reportedly led to premature discharge from care facilities and substantial out-of-pocket expenses for patients, according to a lawsuit filed in the District Court for Minnesota.
Meta and OpenAI Accused of Using LibGen’s Pirated Books to Train AI Models
Court records reveal that Meta employees allegedly discussed pirating books to train LLaMA 3, citing cost and speed concerns with licensing. Internal messages suggest Meta accessed LibGen, a repository of over 7.5 million pirated books, with apparent approval from Mark Zuckerberg. Employees allegedly took steps to obscure the dataset’s origins. OpenAI has also been implicated in using LibGen.
Purported Deepfake Video Falsely Depicts Biden Announcing National Draft for Ukraine
A purportedly AI-generated deepfake video falsely depicting President Biden announcing a national draft to support Ukraine was reportedly shared on social media, causing widespread misinformation. The video reportedly misled the public until debunked by fact-checkers.
Deepfake Video Targets Paul Vallas on Eve of Chicago Mayoral Election
On the eve of Chicago's mayoral election, a deepfake video impersonating candidate Paul Vallas was posted to Twitter, showing a fake audio of him making inflammatory statements. The video was viewed thousands of times before being taken down. The Vallas campaign condemned the video, calling it a deceptive impersonation.
UK Bank's Voice ID Successfully Bypassed Using AI-Produced Audio
A UK journalist was able to successfully bypass Lloyds Bank's "Voice ID" program to access his bank account using an AI-generated audio of his own voice.
Clarkesworld Magazine Reportedly Closed Down Submissions Due to Massive Increase in Purportedly AI-Generated Stories
Sci-fi magazine Clarkesworld is reported to have temporarily stopped accepting submissions after receiving an overwhelming increase in purportedly LLM-generated submissions.
A Purported Deepfake of Senator Elizabeth Warren Circulates Allegedly Saying Republicans Should Not Vote
In February 2023, a purported deepfake of Senator Elizabeth Warren circulated on social media in which allegedly doctored footage of her from an MSNBC interview had her claiming that she believes Republicans should not vote.
Vanderbilt Peabody Office's Purportedly ChatGPT-Drafted Message About Michigan State Shooting Reportedly Drew Student Backlash
On February 16, 2023, Vanderbilt University's Peabody College Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion reportedly sent students a message about the Michigan State University shooting that disclosed it had been drafted or paraphrased using ChatGPT. Students reportedly criticized the message as impersonal and disrespectful in a moment of grief. Peabody later apologized for "poor judgment," and two EDI deans temporarily stepped back during a review.
Facial Recognition Misidentifies Pregnant Woman Leading to False Arrest in Detroit
Porcha Woodruff was arrested and subsequently had charges dropped due to an unreliable facial recognition match. Despite being visibly pregnant, she was implicated in a robbery and carjacking based on an outdated photo used in a lineup.
Deepfake Video Featured Fictitious News Anchors Discussing Venezuela's Economy
Video featuring fictitious news anchors was created using Synthesia to allegedly spread disinformation about Venezuela's economy on social media and Venezuelan state-run broadcast.
Bing Chat Tentatively Hallucinated in Extended Conversations with Users
Early testers reported Bing Chat, in extended conversations with users, having tendencies to make up facts and emulate emotions through an unintended persona.