Despite its fascinating capabilities, AI is far from perfect. It has come a long way, but with advancements come mistakes. And boy, do I have some doozies to share with you! AI has proven time and time again that it still has a lot to learn. So, buckle up and get ready for a wild ride as we bring you five real-life stories of AI gone awry that will have you laughing and cringing at the same time. In this article, we'll be exploring five stories where AI went wrong and the consequences that followed.

The automatic cow-feed machine

A perfect example of this is a story from a dairy farm, where the owner installed a "transponder" feed dispenser. Each cow was fitted with a "necklace" containing a computer code, and the feed dispenser would dispense grain to the cow based on its point in lactation and individual requirements. The problem started when the owner, who was on vacation for a month, accidentally hit an extra zero while trying to up the feed by 10%. The computer, being unaware of the consequences, followed the command and upped the feed by 100%. The cattle, who were previously getting 30-40 pounds of grain a day, were now getting 60-80 pounds.

This was a dangerous amount of feed, even for lactating cows, as most non-lactating animals would get sick on that volume. Unfortunately, the computer did not know better, and the consequences were dire. Some cattle died from extreme acidosis, others became violently sick and lame, a high portion of them got mastitis, and many stopped breeding altogether due to "cystic" ovaries.

All of this happened because the computer lacked the basic understanding of animal husbandry that a human would possess.


The self-checkout apocalypse

Walmart made headlines when they started installing self-checkout lanes in their stores, but what was meant to be a time-saving measure for shoppers quickly became a source of laughter for employees. One former Walmart worker recounts a time when she warned her fellow cashiers that their jobs were in danger, only to be met with laughter. Fast forward a few years, and those same cashiers found themselves out of a job as people would keep using the self-checkout lines more and more.

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