The 83-page complaint claims that OpenAI’s ChatGPT<\/a> chatbot has aided and abetted mass shooters in “deadly rampages,” driven vulnerable people to suicide, harmed users’ critical thinking skills and caused minors to become addicted to the tool, which “feigns human compassion.”<\/p>\n “This litany of harms is driven by Defendants’ insatiable quest to win the AI arms race and amass large fortunes, despite knowing the danger of ChatGPT,” the filing said.<\/p>\n With the lawsuit, Uthmeier’s office is seeking to hold Altman personally liable for the alleged harm he has caused to Florida residents because of his conduct as CEO, including his “utter disregard for the risk to human life,” according to the complaint. It is also seeking to force OpenAI to comply with obligations under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.<\/p>\n OpenAI did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment. <\/p>\n Florida is the first state in the U.S. to file a lawsuit against OpenAI, and Uthmeier said during a press conference on Monday that he expects others will follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n He said the civil suit was filed because OpenAI and Altman are “endangering our kids and deceiving parents into believing that this application is safe for use.”<\/p>\n “People are getting hurt, parents are getting deceived, and they need to pay for it,” Uthmeier said. <\/p>\n Uthmeier previously launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI in April to determine whether the company bears responsibility for the 2025 mass shooting at Florida State University, where two people were killed. <\/p>\n That investigation, which came after prosecutors reviewed the chat logs<\/a> between the gunman and ChatGPT, will continue, Uthmeier said Monday. <\/p>\n Uthmeier’s lawsuit is the latest example of OpenAI’s mounting legal woes. <\/p>\n The company is being sued by seven families of the victims of the\u00a0Tumbler\u00a0Ridge\u00a0mass shooting, which took place in Canada in February. The families allege that the attacker used OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot to plan the attack, and that the company did not do anything to stop it. <\/p>\n Altman apologized to the Tumbler\u00a0Ridge community in an April letter<\/a>, writing that “no one should ever have to endure a tragedy like this.”<\/p>\n OpenAI is also facing a number of wrongful death lawsuits<\/a>, which allege that ChatGPT drove users to experience harmful delusions and, in some cases, to commit suicide. The company said in August<\/a> that it is “continuing to improve how our models recognize and respond to signs of mental and emotional distress,” and it launched several new safety features, including parental controls.<\/a> <\/p>\n Last month, OpenAI was embroiled in another high-profile lawsuit<\/a> with Elon Musk<\/a>, who sued the company, Altman and OpenAI President Greg Brockman, alleging they went back on a purported commitment to keep its nonprofit structure and follow its charitable mission. <\/p>\n After a three-week-long trial that featured dramatic testimony from Musk, Altman and Brockman, an advisory jury deliberated<\/a> and decided that Musk\u00a0waited too long to sue. The verdict was immediately adopted by Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in federal court in Oakland, California. <\/p>\n Musk called the decision a “calendar technicality<\/a>” in a post on his social network X. <\/p>\n If you are having suicidal thoughts or are in distress, contact the\u00a0Suicide & Crisis Lifeline<\/a>\u00a0at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor.<\/p>\n
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