Polymarket apologizes for allowing wagers on fate of U.S. pilots downed in Iran

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: NBC News

April 4, 2026, 12:29 PM EDT


Prediction market platform Polymarket issued an apology for allowing users to place bets on the fate of American pilots aboard a U.S. fighter jet downed over Iran.

A two-seater F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down on Friday, according to a U.S. official. One crew member was rescued, but the other remains missing. In a since-deleted market, users were able to wager on when the pilots might be rescued, with the majority predicting a Saturday rescue. “US confirms pilots rescued by...?” the market read.

Rep. Seth Moulton, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq, slammed the market in a post on X, noting that bets were being placed as a dangerous search and rescue operation was ongoing in Iran.

"They could be your neighbor, a friend, a family member," the Democrat from Massachusetts wrote. "And people are betting on whether or not they’ll be saved.". "This is DISGUSTING," he added.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/polymarket-apologizes-allowing-wagers-fate-us-pilots-downed-iran-rcna266715

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Link to tweet

Seth Moulton
@sethmoulton
There is an ongoing search and rescue operation for a missing American service member whose plane was shot down over Iran. Their safety is unknown.

They could be your neighbor, a friend, a family member. And people are betting on whether or not they'll be saved.

This is DISGUSTING.

Quick reminder too that @DonaldJTrumpJr
is an investor in this dystopian death market and may have access to intelligence that isn't public yet.
Image
2:27 PM · Apr 3, 2026

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[underpants]

1. Polymarket was wrong but people frivolously placing these bets are horrible

[jfz9580m]

13. That is so much of the industry now

This is the shit thriving under these guys underpants .
Crypto, these lousy prediction markets, influencing, those lame LLMs/Agents..

Meanwhile they got rid of most of the federal govt, even some of NIST, cancer research etc.

And all using excuses like: DEI!!!! Whatever your views on DEI (or really I should say “DEI”. Jamie Dimon etc should not be allowed to associate themselves with anything but robber baron hood. Woke capitalism is the enemy of woke), in point of fact a lot of the work the GOP/Trump defund is just hard science research.

Zuckerberg etc probably prefer that medical research is administered by his moll via Chan Zuckerberg than govt funded scientists beholden to no one etc.

[RainCaster]

2. Is the market betting on TSF right now?

Asking for a friend.

[jls4561]

3. So...have they taken it off the site?

[BumRushDaShow]

4. Later in the article they said they did

"We took this market down immediately as it does not meet our integrity standards," the company wrote. "It should not have been posted, and we are investigating how this slipped through our internal safeguards."

Then Moulton replied -

"Taking down this particular bet after I called it out can only be the first step, @Polymarket," he wrote. "There are still 219 war bets active on your platform. Remove these immediately.

"

[jls4561]

6. Thank you for the answer. And Moulton's comment.

[BumRushDaShow]

7. Most welcome!

[WestMichRad]

8. "... our internal safeguards."

Hahaha. As if there are any.

[BumRushDaShow]

9. I think Moulton was facepalming about that too

[groundloop]

5. Polymarket is showing a 17% chance tRump doesn't make it through his full term....

I bet our right wingnuts won't like the fact THAT is being bet on.

But yes, it's sickening that people would be betting on the fate of our service members who are in harm's way.

[ChicagoTeamster]

10. Why didn't they just not do it? Too late now. They just proved they don't deserve to exist.

[turbinetree]

11. They should be drafted and sent to the front lines...............and then lets see them place bets..........

there mealy mouth whoop's we made a mistake doesn't wash.............it's about greed..............

[Intractable]

12. Like fresh water, lack of oil, climate change, crypto currency, the prediction markets are another potential apocolypse.

Betting on human events alters human events. The observer interferes with the observed.

[Mblaze]

14. Fuck 'em

[LudwigPastorius]

15. Fucking ghouls...

These "prediction market" gambling platforms need to be taxed out of existence.

[lonely bird]

16. Why is anyone surprised?

Polymarket and Kalshi are libertarian wet dreams. Libertarians live in the moral vacuum of 4 year olds.

[Wonder Why]

17. Sicko company catering to sickos. Then, again, Sicko voters voting for a sicko.

[DonCoquixote]

18. a true jump the shark moment

How mmuch you wanna bet that these folks are tech bros who probably vote trump? Place your bets.

[NH Ethylene]

19. Act now, apologize later.

I'm sure they are not giving back any profits they made.