{
  "id": 8032255,
  "title": "Elon Musk’s Grok AI contest awards $100k to ‘historically accurate’ version of The Odyssey — but it features a 3-eyed Cyclops and hilarious physics fails",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/elon-musks-grok-ai-contest-awards-100k-to-historically-accurate",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-17T13:11:32.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TechRadar",
    "slug": "techradar",
    "url": "https://www.techradar.com/ai-platforms-assistants/elon-musks-grok-ai-contest-awards-usd100k-to-historically-accurate-version-of-the-odyssey-but-it-features-a-3-eyed-cyclops-and-hilarious-physics-fails"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Elon Musk's AI project, Grok Imagine, has awarded $100,000 to filmmaker Nem Perez for crafting a \"historically accurate\" version of Homer's epic poem, The Odyssey. The winner's five-minute video features at least a minute of dialogue and emphasizes Odysseus's tale to Princess Nausicaa, a detail present in Homer's work but absent from the Christopher Nolan adaptation. The second place ($50,000) was claimed by @JSFILMZ0412 for an extended ending depicting an elderly Odysseus passing his knowledge to future generations. The third place ($25,000) went to @Mr_AllenT, who reimagined the Cyclops cave scene as a horror movie scenario.\n\nWhile AI-generated video has advanced significantly, experts still believe it falls short of genuine filmmaking. The winning video displayed common AI video flaws, such as inconsistent physics, inconsistent costumes, and a generic AI appearance. Additionally, elements like swords, trees, faces, and monsters appeared somewhat smooth, which can be attributed to training the AI on millions of hours of human-made video footage. The use of Princess Nausicaa and Odysseus swapping positions and angles, along with sailors' hands resembling feet, a bow working in reverse, and a Cyclops with three eyes, raises concerns about the authenticity of the work. The AI-generated film has received mixed reactions on social media, with some critics comparing it to \"eating a bowl of wet cardboard\" or calling it \"outstandingly bad.\"",
  "summary": "There are some reasonably impressive visuals in this 5-minute shortened down take on The Odyssey, as well as lots of issues.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}