Florida sues OpenAI over claimed AI harms, including aiding mass shooters, encouraging suicide

Florida on Monday became the first U.S. state to sue OpenAI over the alleged harms caused by the artificial intelligence firm, arguing it knowingly released an unsafe product and ignored warnings about its possible harms. 

The lawsuit, filed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, alleges that OpenAI permitted its flagship AI assistant ChatGPT to aid and abet mass shooters, encourage user suicides, damage users' critical thinking skills, and addict minors, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

“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 lawsuit reads. 

The lawsuit also targets OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman directly for allowing the product to be released with these alleged faults. 

The lawsuit follows a criminal investigation Uthmeier opened in April after prosecutors uncovered the role that ChatGPT played in the Florida State University shooting last year. The suspect in the shooting, Phoenix Ikner, used ChatGPT to aid in the planning of the attack.