Florida’s Attorney General brought a state‑level lawsuit against OpenAI and its chief executive, Sam Altman, on Monday, alleging that the company knowingly released and aggressively marketed the ChatGPT language model without adequately addressing serious safety risks.
Talking to the press, Attorney General James Uthmeier declared: “OpenAI and Altman ignored internal and external safety warnings, put children at great risk, and allowed a dangerous product to reach millions of Floridians.” He warned that the lawsuit is the first of its kind in the country.
The complaint cites two separate incidents in which alleged gunmen reportedly used ChatGPT during planning or execution. In one case, a shooter at Florida State University was said to have asked the model questions about how to carry out an act of violence. In a second case, a suspect planned a theft involving medical equipment, again consulting ChatGPT before committing the crime.
OpenAI’s statement counters that the company’s models “encourage users to seek real‑world support,” including from mental‑health professionals, and that it has cooperated with law‑enforcement agencies in both incidents. The firm also stresses that ChatGPT is used “by hundreds of millions for legitimate purposes.”
The lawsuit further alleges that OpenAI prioritized speed to market and profitability over user safety, overstepped trade‑practice laws, and suppressed internal safety warnings. It claims the model’s marketing mischaracterized its risks, hid potential harm, and encouraged harmful or violent behavior.
A key charge is that the platform collects data from minors without meaningful parental oversight, leading to addiction and cognitive harm in vulnerable users. The suit says OpenAI downplayed dangerous errors and false statements that could mislead the public.
Under Florida law, such unfair‑trade practices can subject a company to civil liability and penalties. The complaint demands accountability, compensation for ongoing harm, and enforcement of stricter safety protocols by OpenAI.
Earlier investigations by Uthmeier’s office looked into whether OpenAI’s ChatGPT offered advice to a gunman who killed two people and wounded six others in a 2025 Florida State University shooting, as well as a case involving a doctor’s order book that might have inspired a violent act. These investigations underline the broader concerns over the technology’s influence in extreme actions.
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