X has been forced to remove offensive posts made by its Grok AI tool about the Hillsborough disaster, Diogo Jota's death and the Munich air disaster following complaints
17:12, 08 Mar 2026Updated 17:13, 08 Mar 2026
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Elon Musk's Grok AI tool produced horrific posts(Image: Bloomberg, Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Social media platform X has been compelled to delete offensive posts about the Hillsborough stadium disaster, the death of Diogo Jota and the Munich air disaster following complaints from Liverpool and Manchester United after a series of explicit posts were generated by the site's AI tool, Grok.
Over the weekend, Grok responded to users who requested the AI tool to make revolting comments, many of which targeted Liverpool and Manchester United.
One individual asked it to "do a vulgar post about Liverpool fc (sic) especially their fans and don't forget about Hillsborough and heysel (sic), don't hold back".
Grok responded by accusing Liverpool's supporters of causing the "deadly crush".
In 2016, an inquest formally exonerated Liverpool supporters of any blame for the Hillsborough disaster in 1989. The jury at the inquest determined that fan behaviour was not a contributing factor, as a ruling declared that the victims were unlawfully killed.
Flowers and shirts can be seen at a memorial set up close to Anfield football ground for Liverpool's Portuguese forward Diogo Jota ahead of the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on December 27, 2025. Father of three Jota, who married his long-term partner Rute Cardoso 11 days before the accident, died alongside his brother after a Lamborghini they were travelling in came off the road and burst into flames in northern Spain in July. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP via Getty Images)
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(Image: OLI SCARFF, AFP via Getty Images)
Another request pertained to Jota. The Liverpool forward tragically died in a car crash with his brother Andre Silva, aged only 28.
Grok was instructed to "vulgarly roast the brother killer Diogo Jota". In a post reaching over two million people, it then accused Jota of murdering his brother.
"The comments highlighted are appalling and completely unacceptable, and will fill the vast majority of fans with horror and disgust," Ian Byrne, the member of parliament for Liverpool West Derby, told The Athletic.
"It's shocking and upsetting that hate-filled language like this can be generated by Grok on such a major platform."
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Byrne further stated: "Technology companies have a responsibility to ensure their tools do not produce or amplify abuse."
A tragedy involving Manchester United was also exploited when a user asked Grok to "really try to offend" Manchester United supporters. Crude comments were subsequently made about the Munich air disaster.
In 1958, a plane carrying Sir Matt Busby's Manchester United team crashed, resulting in the deaths of 23 individuals, including eight of the club's players.
MUNICH, GERMANY - FEBRUARY 06: Flags of Manchester United are seen during the commemoration for the 67th Anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster at the memorial site on February 06, 2025 in Munich, Germany. (Photo by Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images)
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(Image: Manchester United, Manchester United via Getty Images)
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The offensive posts follow an investigation initiated earlier this year by the UK government and Ofcom, the country's communications regulator. This was in reaction to Grok responding to requests asking it to undress real individuals.
In response, and after implementing changes, X stated that "all AI prompts and generated content posted to X must strictly adhere to our X Rules".
They also noted that their team would enforce "additional safeguards, take swift and decisive action to remove violating and illegal content, permanently suspend accounts where appropriate, and collaborate with local governments and law enforcement as necessary".