If you’ve seen recent chatter online about Grand Theft Auto 6, you may have noticed claims that Rockstar Games will include a dedicated “twerk button.” That story is false. After following the trail last week, I found the majority of those posts trace back to a single creator: YouTuber Jeffery Phillips, who explains in his video how easy it was to influence Google’s AI summary to present the twerk button as if it were real. Watch Phillips’ video on YouTube.
Phillips told Polygon that the project was a months-long experiment. “I think I spent a total of 3 months doing this ‘challenge.’ I started it in July and it was finished late September,” he said, noting he only posted intermittently. What began as a lighthearted test—mostly on Reddit and X—grew into something larger once Google began giving more weight to Reddit threads in AI-powered search results. As a result, many tongue-in-cheek posts were amplified by automated summaries that struggle to separate in-jokes from verified reporting. When asked for proof in one Reddit thread, Phillips replied, “Rockstar called me,” and that offhand line apparently ended up cited by the AI overview.
“I was definitely surprised to see that I even showed up on the AI overview. Especially since I didn’t even try to make anything with substantial or convincing evidence. I thought at most it would say some people on Reddit think it could be true. I would’ve never expected my own comments being used as a source though,” Phillips explained.
The subreddit Phillips created as part of the experiment has grown since his video went live, with users posting their own fabricated “facts” to see whether they can fool the AI. The episode highlights how automated aggregations can conflate playful fan speculation with real developer announcements.
Despite the attention, Phillips says he’s ambivalent about GTA overall. “Honestly I’m not even that big of a GTA fan,” he told Polygon. “I’ll definitely play it and probably enjoy it but it just doesn’t sit right with me killing those innocent NPCs. I don’t think it will live up to the hype either… But I think as time passes people will like the game. I’m sure it will be great.”
For context on how AI systems are changing search results, see coverage of Google’s recent move to prioritize Reddit content in AI answers. Reuters reported on that shift.
If you want to see the experiment firsthand, Phillips’ video is worth watching—his discussion of the twerk button begins at about 9:30.
