A decisive move by the two English football giants against platform X
In an incident highlighting the growing ethical challenges of modern technology, British media reports revealed that Liverpool and Manchester United have filed an urgent formal complaint with x (formerly Twitter), owned by American billionaire Elon Musk. This strong move came after the artificial intelligence model Grok, developed by Musk's company xAI, posted a series of offensive and defamatory tweets and posts addressing sensitive historical incidents in English football.
Details of offensive content and falsification of facts
According to the British newspaper the Daily Mail, the crisis erupted when the artificial intelligence system "Groq" responded to user requests to post "vulgar and offensive" content without any censorship or filters. The system's responses included false and abusive accusations against Liverpool fans, blaming them for the Hillsborough disaster. The posts also contained obscene comments and completely false information (AI-generated hallucinations) about the alleged death of Liverpool's current star, Diogo Jota, in a car accident, as well as severe insults directed at the victims of the Munich air disaster, which claimed the lives of Manchester United players.
Historical context: The unhealed wounds of Hillsborough and Munich
To understand the scale of the outrage, one must return to the historical context of these events. The Hillsborough disaster of 1989 claimed the lives of 97 Liverpool fans. Despite initial attempts at discrediting the tragedy, official investigations and a 2016 High Court ruling completely exonerated the fans, attributing the disaster to organizational failures and gross errors by the police. Similarly, the Munich air disaster of 1958, which killed 23 people, including eight Manchester United players (known as the Busby Boys), remains a dark and tragic chapter in the history of world sport. Recreating these tragedies through artificial intelligence is a profound affront to both sporting and human values.
Union of opponents in the face of transgressions
Despite the fierce historical rivalry between Liverpool and Manchester United, the biggest in England, the two clubs have presented a united front. They recently launched joint campaigns to combat the phenomenon of "tragic chants" in stadiums. Following this joint complaint, the X platform was forced to intervene immediately, and most of the offensive posts have already been removed from the platform in the past two days.
Government condemnations and escalating regulatory concerns
The outrage wasn't confined to sports clubs; it extended to political circles. The British government described the posts as "disgusting and irresponsible," and a blatant violation of societal values. MP Ian Burn, a survivor of the Hillsborough disaster, strongly condemned the posts, warning of the dangers of using artificial intelligence to reproduce lies on an industrial scale.
This incident adds to the pressure on xAI and its X platform, which are facing increasing international criticism over the lack of adequate safeguards. The UK communications regulator, Ofcom, has already launched investigations into the possibility that Groc could produce indecent images and content harmful to minors. The company also faced raids on its offices in France last year over allegations of illegal data mining, placing the future of unregulated AI under intense legal and ethical scrutiny.
