Multiple AI chatbots suffer simultaneous outages
Multiple major AI chatbot services including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok and Copilot experienced simultaneous outages on 3 September 2026, preventing users from accessing features like message sending, file uploads and image generation. The companies reported technical problems but did not confirm a shared cause for the outages occurring within the same timeframe.
What happened
ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok and Copilot experienced simultaneous outages on 3 September 2026. ChatGPT users reported high error rates and inability to send commands or load conversations, with problems affecting login, file uploads, voice conversations, search, Deep Research and image generation.
Claude services experienced elevated error rates with multiple models affected. Anthropic began investigation at 12:37 UTC, implemented a fix at 12:47 UTC and reported resolution at 12:56 UTC. Gemini experienced partial disruption primarily affecting API services and developer tools rather than a complete outage.
Grok showed signs of overload with users seeing load warnings. Downdetector recorded sharp increases in outage reports across all platforms. OpenAI stated in an X post that 'the stars are almost aligning' but did not provide clear technical details about the cause.
Reported impact
Thousands of users globally faced difficulty accessing services. ChatGPT Plus subscribers were among those affected, and some services remained degraded during the outage period.
Index analysis
The simultaneous timing of outages across competing services using separate infrastructure raised questions about a possible shared internet infrastructure factor, but no direct link between the three outages was confirmed by the companies. No official technical explanation of the root cause was provided.
Governance controls
OpenAI's engineering team identified the source of the problem and began implementing measures to limit impact, without specifying a timeline for full service restoration. Anthropic monitored its recovery process following the applied fix.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.