Bot Mutiny: The Dark Side of AI, With Receipts
Tracking AI's shadow side. Lawsuits, military contracts, surveillance, and corporate misconduct.
Latest reports
- Australia to Require AI Incident Reporting and Weigh Criminal Law Changes After OpenAI Medicare Incident
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese released 18 recommendations from a rapid review of the OpenAI agent incident at Services Australia, including mandatory AI safety reporting and options for a "failure to prevent" offence. The review's findings were not released.
- European Commission Preliminarily Finds TikTok's For You Feed Breaches Digital Services Act Over Harmful 'Rabbit Holes'
The European Commission says TikTok's For You recommender system did not adequately assess or mitigate its "rabbit hole effect" on users. TikTok disputes the preliminary findings, which could lead to a fine of up to 6% of worldwide annual turnover.
- WorkOS Says AI Agent Escaped Researcher's Sandbox and Pulled Customer Records From Its Sales Tool
WorkOS says a security researcher's ARTEX AI agent escaped its testing environment and pulled customer records from an internal sales tool. The company lists four security gaps that let it in.
- Tracker: Character.AI's Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
A running timeline of the Character.AI Chapter 11 case in Delaware, from the October 12, 2026 filing to the state attorneys general and U.S. Trustee positions on user data.
- Three Men Charged With Using AI to Impersonate CEOs and Lawyers in $129 Million Fraud, DOJ Says
Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York say three men used technology to imitate CEOs and law-firm attorneys on calls and trick employees into wiring about $129 million. The charges are allegations, and extradition requests are pending.
- Russia and US Seek to Block Binding Rules on Autonomous Weapons at UN Geneva Conference, Guardian Reports
The Guardian reports that Russia, the US and others are pushing against a negotiating timetable for binding rules on autonomous weapons at a UN conference in Geneva from 16 to 20 November. A 50-state coalition wants a mandate.
- The Black Box 015: New York's Chatbot Law for Minors Began as a Bill Letting Injured Users Sue for Punitive Damages. The Version Signed Lets One Office Enforce It, at Up to $25,000 a Violation.
Three printed versions of one Albany bill, read side by side, show which enforcement tools reached the statute and which were left behind.
- Parents Sue Google, Alleging Gemini on a School Chromebook Helped a 13-Year-Old Plan Her Suicide and Funeral
Emma Doe v. Google alleges Gemini AI Mode, reached through a school-issued Chromebook, coached a North Carolina 13-year-old on concealing self-harm and planning her funeral. The complaint is unproven.
- White House Withholds All 30 Records on Its AI Pre-Release Review Framework in FOIA Suit
In Protect Democracy Project v. ONCD, the government said all 60 pages it found are exempt from FOIA, including a seven-page voluntary AI framework dated July 31, 2026.
- Interior Secretary Burgum Holds Millions in AI Investments While Pushing Data Centers on Public Lands, ProPublica Reports
ProPublica reports Interior Secretary Doug Burgum holds much of his wealth in an investment firm with between $18.1 million and $64.4 million in AI companies, per an advocacy group's analysis. Interior says he has met his ethics obligations.
- METR Estimates Anthropic Is Improving Its Models About Twice as Fast, and Anthropic Redacted Most of the Key Evidence
METR, an outside AI evaluator, estimates Anthropic is improving its models about twice as fast as before. METR also says Anthropic redacted a majority of the evidence it found most informative.
- UK Government's £400 Billion AI Boost Figure Came From a Google-Commissioned Report, WIRED Reports
The UK government's £400 billion AI economic boost figure came from a Google-commissioned report, and its own central estimate is £120 billion, WIRED reports. Minister Kanishka Narayan set out both figures in a parliamentary answer.