KPMG withdraws AI report after organizations say it falsely claimed their AI usage, highlighting risks when professional firms use AI to write about AI without proper human validation.

What happened: KPMG pulled a report titled "Redefining excellence in the age of agentic AI" published in October 2025 after research group GPTZero identified inaccuracies stemming from AI hallucinations (false claims generated by the AI). Organizations including UBS, the UK's National Health Service, Swiss Federal Railways, and Transport for London told the Financial Times that the report's claims about their AI usage were either untrue or misleading.

Why it matters: Professional services firms are trusted to provide accurate research that guides business decisions. When KPMG appears to have used AI to write a report about AI without adequate human oversight to validate the content, it undermines that trust and suggests the firm failed to follow its own guidelines requiring human review. This follows EY withdrawing a report last month that included fake footnotes and AI hallucinations, indicating a pattern of risk in how consulting firms are deploying AI tools.

What to watch: KPMG stated it is conducting its own investigation into how the inaccuracies occurred and reiterated that all staff must follow guidelines on responsible AI use, including human oversight and independent source verification. The firm has removed the report from its websites.