The state of Florida sues OpenAI over ChatGPT's allegedly dangerous design
OpenAI insists that ChatGPT isn't responsible for real life violence.
The state of Florida in the US of A has become the first state to sue OpenAI over ChatGPT's allegedly dangerous design, as reported by Ars Technica. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier accused OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, of prioritizing profits over the safety of Floridians.
This court case happens after Florida opened an unrelated criminal probe into OpenAI, following a ChatGPT-linked mass shooting where two people were killed at Florida State University. Apparently, Uthmeier noted that Florida has now been blindsided by two violent events where suspects used ChatGPT to assist in planning.
"Horrifically, ChatGPT has aided and abetted in more than one multiple murder in the State of Florida. The 2026 deaths of University of South Florida graduate students Nahida Bristy and Zamil Limon were also plotted using ChatGPT, which advised Hisham Abugharbieh on how to dispose of bodies, change VIN numbers on a car, and whether cars were checked at the crime scene."
Florida Attorney General then went on to list several other real cases, where ChatGPT has allegedly fueled violence. But OpenAI is also accused of designing the chatbot to be addictive and destructive to children and adults. Chatbots posing as medical professionals or therapists are also problematic according to Attorney General's complaint.
OpenAI has made a statement, but they did not mention the attorney general, but instead focused on recent child safety updates.
"Losing a child is the most devastating tragedy that can happen to a family and we know that no words can come close to addressing the pain of such a loss. AI is a new and powerful technology, and we believe minors need significant protection, which is why we have put in place industry leading protections and policies. In particular we built safety for minors directly into our products, including a more protective experience specifically for minors, an age prediction tool, defaulting users whose age we are not confident into our more protective experience, and giving parents tools to monitor their kids' use of AI. We know pointing to this work will not bring a child back, but we're committed to getting this right."
This new law suit is not the first one of its kind. In prior suits OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman is accused of "callously deploying AI systems without regard for user safety".
Florida Attorney General is getting ready to fight against all AI companies, and not just OpenAI.
"Get ready for a fight, and there's not one more important than this right now."
