Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman on May 30, 2024 [1].
The legal action marks a significant escalation in government efforts to regulate generative artificial intelligence. By targeting both the corporation and its chief executive, Florida is attempting to hold leadership personally accountable for the perceived societal harms of AI tools.
The lawsuit, filed in the Florida Circuit Court, accuses OpenAI of putting profit over safety and concealing the risks associated with its ChatGPT product [1, 2]. Moody said the company misrepresented the safety of its technology to the public while hiding dangers that could lead to violent outcomes [3, 4].
In a complaint filing, Moody said, "OpenAI has repeatedly put profit over safety, misrepresenting the risks of its technology to the public" [2]. She said the AI tool is a hazardous product that endangers children, and fuels violence [3].
OpenAI has denied the allegations. Sam Altman said the company is committed to building safe AI and will continue to work with regulators to address any concerns [1].
The state's case focuses on the tension between rapid commercial deployment and the rigorous safety testing required for public-facing software. Florida said the drive for market dominance led the company to ignore or hide critical vulnerabilities in the AI's guardrails [1, 4].
“"OpenAI's ChatGPT is a hazardous product that endangers our children and fuels violence."”
This lawsuit signals a shift from general regulatory discussions to concrete legal challenges regarding AI safety. If the court finds that OpenAI intentionally concealed risks to accelerate profit, it could establish a legal precedent for 'duty of care' in AI development, potentially forcing companies to be more transparent about the failures and dangers of their models before public release.
