100 Thieves Apologized for AI Merch in 24 Hours. Its Co-Founder Undid It in 48.
What happened. On September 29, 2026, esports organization 100 Thieves teased its upcoming Old School RuneScape (OSRS) merchandise collaboration with game developer Jagex, posting a video of a model wearing a black T-shirt covered in RuneScape skill icons. Longtime players immediately spotted that the design was riddled with errors: a hockey mask sat in the Prayer slot instead of a halo, the Defence icon lost its shield and became a plain cross, the Fletching icon showed a double-ended arrow, and several other symbols were warped beyond recognition — all telltale signs of AI-generated artwork.
The fast part. 100 Thieves did not wait out the backlash. On September 30, the organization posted on X: "We messed up," admitting that one designer had used AI to "hurriedly edit" the shirt during the final stage of production, and the flawed sample was pushed straight into a photoshoot. The statement added that AI "has no place" in its apparel design and that the team was working directly with Jagex "to make things right." Crisis-communications trainers point to this as a near-ideal first move: a same-week acknowledgment, no deflection, and a named cause instead of a vague "we're looking into it."
The undoing. The goodwill lasted barely two days. On October 1, 100 Thieves co-founder Matthew "Nadeshot" Haag — still the organization's most recognizable public face even after stepping back from day-to-day leadership — posted his own AI-generated promotional video on X for a sponsorship deal with crypto casino Roobet, showing himself and fellow streamer TimTheTatMan sitting in front of a pile of "Max Win" gold bars. Commenters immediately drew the line between the two posts: the same organization that had just apologized for shipping AI content was now fronting an obviously AI-made ad for online gambling.
Three things stand out for anyone managing a brand through an AI-related misstep:
- Speed earns credit, but only once. A same-day, specific apology bought 100 Thieves real goodwill — until a second AI-generated post from inside the same organization reset the clock and made the first apology look performative.
- A crisis response is organization-wide, not department-wide. The merch team's apology couldn't inoculate the brand against a founder's unrelated post; audiences don't separate "the design team" from "the company" when judging sincerity.
- Adjacent risk categories compound. Pairing an AI-content apology with an AI-generated gambling ad combined two separately sensitive topics — AI authenticity and gambling promotion — into one reputational story that neither issue alone would have produced.
Sources: Dexerto, Sportskeeda, 100 Thieves on X, Esports.gg
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