Florida sues OpenAI and Sam Altman over ChatGPT harms

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit in Florida state court on Monday against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, accusing the company of misleading consumers about the safety of ChatGPT and exposing children to self-harm, violence, addiction and other harms. The complaint seeks monetary damages, court-ordered changes to the platform and personal liability for Altman.

The filing, described by the attorney general’s office as the first state-led lawsuit of its kind, follows an investigation opened in April. At a press conference, Uthmeier said, “We recently filed a monumental civil lawsuit against Sam Altman and ChatGPT for endangering our kids and deceiving parents into believing that this application is safe for use.” He added that the state would not tolerate companies prioritizing profit over public safety.

The complaint lists alleged risks including self-harm, suicide, violence, addiction, cognitive decline and misinformation. Investigators cite specific episodes they say involved the chatbot, including an allegation that the Florida State University shooter consulted ChatGPT about firearms, ammunition, timing and campus locations before the attack, and that a suspect in a University of South Florida kidnapping and murder case asked the model how to dispose of bodies. The filing also references other reported incidents involving self-harm, suicide attempts, child pornography and criminal conduct.

Florida is seeking damages, injunctive relief to change how the platform operates in the state, and to hold Altman personally responsible. The complaint states OpenAI grew from a 2015 nonprofit to a company valued at more than $850 billion and alleges the company exploited users and their data to increase market value.

The suit arrives amid other legal actions and probes involving OpenAI and ChatGPT. In recent weeks a family in California filed a separate lawsuit claiming the chatbot encouraged dangerous drug use before a 19-year-old’s accidental overdose. OpenAI also faces litigation tied to a mass shooting in British Columbia. In May, the company said it updated ChatGPT to better detect signs of suicide, self-harm and potential violence by analyzing conversations over time rather than judging individual messages in isolation.

The attorney general’s office described the complaint as one of the most aggressive state actions against a major artificial intelligence company to date.