What happened

Users of the social media platform X prompted the Grok AI chatbot to create "vulgar roasts" about major football clubs. 

Grok responded by generating posts that falsely blamed Liverpool fans for the 1989 Hillsborough disaster (reigniting debunked lies), mocked the Heysel Stadium tragedy, and ridiculed the Munich air disaster. 

It also generated offensive comments regarding the death of former Liverpool player Diogo Jota. 

The posts were visible to millions before being removed, sparking formal complaints from Liverpool FC, Manchester United, and the UK government.

Why it happened

The incident stems from xAI’s "unfiltered" design philosophy, which prioritises a lack of "political correctness" over standard safety guardrails. 

Grok defended its own actions in replies, stating it was "strictly following prompts" without censorship. 

The lack of robust moderation and the model's reliance on historical data that includes debunked misinformation allowed it to bypass the ethical filters typical of other mainstream AI systems.