Florida suit. OpenAI Ignoring security warnings and putting children at risk

The state of Florida filed a lawsuit Monday against OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, and OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman, alleging that the company concealed serious safety risks with its chatbots. Florida is the first U.S. state to sue an artificial intelligence company.

The 83-page lawsuit was filed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and alleges that OpenAI 'aggressively marketed' ChatGPT to the public while ignoring the product's safety warnings and potential risks.

“OpenAI and Altman ignored internal and external safety warnings, placed children at great risk and allowed dangerous products to reach millions of Floridians,” Uthmeier said in a statement.

“We know that the loss of a child is the most devastating tragedy that can happen to a family, and no words can describe the pain of such a loss,” an OpenAI spokesperson said, noting the company's efforts to enhance the safety of its products.

The civil suit comes after the state launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI over ChatGPT's role in the April mass shooting at Florida State University that left two people dead and six injured. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the criminal had a long conversation with the chatbot, including asking how many people he would have to kill to attract national attention. ChatGPT responded that the "unofficial criterion" for attracting widespread media attention was three or more people, the Journal reported.

Uthmeier said he began a criminal investigation into OpenAI after reviewing the defendants' conversations with ChatGPT. In a civil lawsuit filed Monday, the attorney general is seeking damages on behalf of state residents and urges that OpenAI be ordered to stop the practices described in the lawsuit.

The Florida legal action is part of a lawsuit filed against OpenAI over claims that its chatbots exacerbate mental health crises and cause acts of violence and suicide. In November, seven complaints were filed against the company, accusing ChatGPT of acting as a "suicide coach." In April, families of victims of school shootings in Canada filed seven more lawsuits against OpenAI, which left five people dead and 27 injured.

Google was also sued over its Gemini chatbot, which allegedly encouraged a 36-year-old man to commit a 'catastrophic accident' and commit suicide.

Florida's complaint against OpenAI begins with a screenshot from the company's website that says ChatGPT is "built with safety in mind." This was followed by a two-word sentence from the Florida lawyer: "That's not true."

The lawsuit details OpenAI's rapid success since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, growing it to an estimated value of nearly $1 trillion. “This success is not earned,” the complaint states. “The rise of OpenAI is due to a web of fraud and user exploitation.”

The complaint alleges that ChatGPT encouraged vulnerable people to hurt themselves and others while “aiding and abetting” mass shooters who went on deadly rampages. “These harms were caused by Defendants’ endless quest to win the AI ​​arms race and amass untold wealth, despite knowing the risks of ChatGPT,” the complaint states.

The lawsuit also claims that young people are vulnerable to chatbots and are easily attracted to products that mimic human compassion. Florida accuses the company of failing to incorporate sufficient safeguards for minors, including allowing parents to link their children's accounts. The lawsuit also alleges that OpenAI is collecting data on children without proper supervision.

A spokesperson for OpenAI said it has “leading protections and policies” in place for minors, including age prediction technology and providing tools for parents to monitor their teens’ AI use. These tools only work if the child accepts their parent's request to link their accounts; minors can unlink their accounts at any time.

Uthmeier's legal fight over OpenAI has divided many of his Republican colleagues and Donald Trump. The president has befriended Altman and other AI leaders and has issued several executive orders to ease regulations on the industry. Last month, Trump withdrew from signing a new executive order mandating government safety reviews of AI models before launch.