{"id":228567,"date":"2026-04-12T12:14:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T12:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/228567\/"},"modified":"2026-04-12T12:14:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T12:14:27","slug":"fla-ag-opens-openai-investigation-after-chatgpt-records-surface-in-fsu-shooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/228567\/","title":{"rendered":"Fla. AG opens OpenAI investigation after ChatGPT records surface in FSU shooting"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2014 Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced Wednesday that his office is opening an investigation into OpenAI, arguing the company\u2019s artificial intelligence technology raises concerns about public safety, national security and child protection.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, we formally launch an investigation into OpenAI, and subpoenas are forthcoming,\u201d Uthmeier said in a social media post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

WATCH: Florida AG opens OpenAI investigation after ChatGPT records surface in FSU shooting<\/p>\n

Florida AG opens OpenAI investigation after ChatGPT records surface in FSU shooting<\/p>\n

Uthmeier said the probe will examine whether AI tools are being used in dangerous ways, including in connection with the 2025 Florida State University shooting<\/a> that killed two people and injured six others.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs big tech rolls out these technologies, they should not \u2014 they cannot \u2014 put our safety and security at risk,\u201d Uthmeier said.<\/p>\n

The announcement comes after the release of ChatGPT records<\/a> tied to accused gunman Phoenix Ikner. Those records show a troubling sequence of messages in the hours before the shooting, including questions about suicide, when the FSU Student Union is busiest, how the country would react to a shooting at the school and how many victims it typically takes to draw media attention.<\/p>\n

In a statement about the records, OpenAI said that after learning about the shooting last April, it identified a ChatGPT account believed to be associated with the suspect and proactively shared that information with law enforcement.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur hearts go out to everyone affected by this devastating tragedy,\u201d an OpenAI spokesperson said. \u201cAfter learning of the incident in late April 2025, we identified a ChatGPT account believed to be associated with the suspect, proactively shared this information with law enforcement and cooperated with authorities. We build ChatGPT to understand people\u2019s intent and respond in a safe and appropriate way, and we continue improving our technology.\u201d<\/p>\n

As of Thursday afternoon, the company had yet to respond to questions about Attorney General Uthmeier\u2019s investigation.<\/p>\n

While the chat records are expected to factor into a forthcoming lawsuit against OpenAI, prosecutors in the criminal case have been more cautious about discussing them publicly ahead of trial.<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly there is evidence concerning ChatGPT, but I won\u2019t be commenting on the evidence at all until we\u2019re in the courtroom,\u201d State Attorney Jack Campbell said.<\/p>\n

Campbell said AI records are becoming part of a growing body of digital evidence investigators use to understand a suspect\u2019s actions, mindset and planning before a crime.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow someone has been interacting with that ChatGPT or other platforms of AI often gives us information about what they were doing, what they were thinking and how they were doing it,\u201d Campbell said.<\/p>\n

The controversy is also adding fuel to a broader political push against major tech platforms. Congressman Jimmy Patronis (R-FL1) said the case underscores his call for Congress to repeal Section 230 protections, which shield online platforms from liability for much of the content posted by users.<\/p>\n

\u201cSocial media companies have hidden behind the Section 230 law, and it was created for one set of circumstances, but it\u2019s been perverted into this other universal shield for all types of dangerous content,\u201d Patronis said.<\/p>\n

It remains unclear how broad Uthmeier\u2019s investigation will be or what, specifically, the coming subpoenas will seek. But the move signals that Florida officials are preparing to more aggressively test where AI company responsibility begins \u2014 and where criminal accountability remains with the person using the technology.<\/p>\n

Uthmeier said he is also calling on the Florida Legislature to move quickly on new protections<\/a> for children related to AI. Meanwhile, the criminal case in the FSU shooting remains on track for trial this fall, with prosecutors indicating ChatGPT-related evidence is expected to be part of the proceedings, even if they are not yet discussing those details in public.<\/p>\n

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Multiple Hillsborough County schools are closing down in 2027<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay 28 reporter Jada Williams has the latest on how Hillsborough County Public Schools is planning major student reassignments and school closures for the 2027-28 school year.<\/p>\n

Multiple Hillsborough County schools are closing down in 2027; parents aren’t on board<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2014 Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced Wednesday that his office is opening an investigation into…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":228568,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[205,89995,8114,29,40756,84314,3074,232,234,233,5910,208],"class_list":{"0":"post-228567","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tallahassee","8":"tag-abc-action-news","9":"tag-chatgpt","10":"tag-florida-attorney-general-james-uthmeier","11":"tag-florida-news","12":"tag-fsu-shooting","13":"tag-openai","14":"tag-sunshine-state-news","15":"tag-tallahassee","16":"tag-tallahassee-headlines","17":"tag-tallahassee-news","18":"tag-tampa-bay-28","19":"tag-wfts"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228567"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228567\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228568"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}