The state of Florida filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman on Monday, claiming the company knowingly released and aggressively marketed ChatGPT to the public while concealing serious risks.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said during a news conference that the company suppressed internal safety warnings and deceived users about the true nature and dangers of the product.

“Today, we announced the first-in-the-nation state-led lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman,” Uthmeier said. “OpenAI and Altman ignored internal and external safety warnings, put children at great risk, and allowed a dangerous product to reach millions of Floridians.”

The civil complaint filed in Florida circuit court references two separate shootings where the alleged gunmen were reported to have asked ChatGPT questions while planning their crimes. OpenAI said in a statement that its models repeatedly encouraged the individuals to seek real-world support, including from mental health professionals. The company also said it has cooperated with law enforcement in both cases.

“ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes,” an OpenAI statement said. “We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise.”

In April, Uthmeier opened a criminal investigation into OpenAI over whether ChatGPT offered advice to a gunman who killed two people and wounded six others last year at Florida State University. And in another case, prosecutors have said the man charged with killing two University of South Florida doctoral students had asked ChatGPT what would happen if a human body was put in a garbage bag and thrown in a dumpster, days before they went missing.

  • bitteroldcoot@piefed.social
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    18 hours ago

    YaY florida???

    I’m mean, I’ve lived in a bunch of state, and when it comes to blatant corruption Florida is in a league by itself. And yet they are the ones suing Openai???

    FYI: states lived in, PA,NJ,KY,AL,FL.

    Did some poking around. The AG bringing this case stole 10 million in medicare money. This a diversion to keep a grand jury finding against him buried.