Why Is Olivia Dunne Under Fire for Code Violation?

You might think that Olivia Dunne found herself in trouble for some wrongdoing in gymnastics. Let us clear the air in the very beginning that it is far from gymnastics! Also, it is nothing related to promoting any company, like the way it happened last year. After wrapping up her duties on the mats for LSU at the National Championships recently, Livvy chose to get into some voluntary engagement. It was here things went slightly awry.

The voluntary engagement saw Livvy landing at Raising Cane, a popular eatery in Baton Rouge. Dunne, accompanied by boss lady Haleigh Bryant, Kiya Johnson, Savannah Schoenherr, and Aleah Finnegan, visited Cane’s to prepare and hand out food to the visitors. Understandably, the place had fans flocking in from all over to have a glimpse of the winning team. Among them, someone called Livvy out for a legitimate reason of violating the ‘health code’.

When Olivia Dunne posted on X, a clip of her working in the kitchen with her blonde locks let down, it created a stir among fans. One X fan commented, “i love you livvy but hair down in a commercial kitchen does break a few health and safety standards and that cannot be overlooked“. Meanwhile, another asked, “No hairnet????? You know how many violations are being committed here?”

The fan’s concern for people’s health was relevant, as hair in food may be hazardous. But in the end, Olivia Dunne’s fanbase demonstrated its multifaceted nature, with some providing grounded critique focused on practicalities, while others offered more indiscriminate praise.

Despite all the health concerns, we get the lightheartedness of the incident. But a year back, one more allegation for “violation of code of conduct” came in Livvy’s way. That was more serious, which even got LSU to enter the matter.

Promoting the ‘artificial’ got Livvy into trouble

Last year, Olivia Dunne shared a paid partnership video on TikTok promoting the company Caktus.ai. The brand touted its product as “the first-ever educational artificial intelligence tool.” In the clip, Olivia stated that Caktus.ai will “provide real resources for you to cite at the end of your essays and paragraphs.” For context, the tool would have been helpful for the students to complete their homework. This did not seem to have sat well with LSU.

LSU authorities came out clear to issue a statement against the use of AI, calling it a violation of its student code of conduct.  It stated, “USING AI TO PRODUCE WORK THAT A STUDENT THEN REPRESENTS AS ONE’S OWN COULD RESULT IN A CHARGE OF ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT, AS OUTLINED IN THE CODE OF STUDENT CONDUCT.” Although the statement nowhere mentioned Olivia Dunne or the company, the reference is not difficult to understand. Interestingly, the company was upbeat.

Harrison Leonard, one founder of Caktus.ai, brushed aside the pushback by LSU while passing Olivia Dunne, as he stated, “Schools have been pushing this off for a long time, not actually making statements. That really goes to show the power of NIL and the power of Livvy Dunne. She made that statement and she made that conversation begin, which is amazing and just goes to show her power. She’s dealt with it perfectly.” In fact, Leonard stepped further out in the matter.

When he was asked if the company had any thoughts of taking down the promo video, he said Olivia Dunne did not violate any rules. He also stated that this was only the start of Livvy’s relationship with the company. Notably, Dunne’s NIL valuation is $3.7 million, which has made her one of the most prominent female college athletes. As her retirement talks are in the air, even if she steps down from LSU gymnastics, she will keep her social media influencer boat afloat. If she sticks to her college, her NIL value may further soar. Nothing can be said just yet!