Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed the first state-led lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO alleging the company knowingly released and aggressively marketed ChatGPT to the public—including to children—while concealing serious risks, suppressing internal safety warnings.
Uthmeier says OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman also deceived Floridians about the true nature and dangers of the product.
“OpenAI and Altman ignored internal and external safety warnings, put children at great risk, and allowed a dangerous product to reach millions of Floridians,” Uthmeier said at a June 1 press conference announcing the lawsuit.
The civil complaint, which was filed June 1 in the Tenth Judicial Circuit of Florida (Highlands County), claims OpenAI and Altman prioritized speed to market and commercial gain over user safety, disregarded repeated warnings from experts both inside and outside the company, and deployed a product that facilitates and encourages harm – including self-harm and violence – while falsely assuring users it was safe.
The complaint also alleges ChatGPT collects data from minors without meaningful parental oversight, causes behavioral addiction and cognitive harm, and is prone to dangerous errors that the company has actively downplayed.
“Today’s AI companies have largely assisted with the evolution of the digital playground,” FDLE Special Agent in Charge Mike Duffey said. “Protecting our children means teaching them to navigate not just the real people behind the screens, but the artificial minds engineered to mimic them.
“Parental vigilance must shift from simply monitoring who our children talk to, to ensuring they understand what they are talking to – because a machine programmed to please can never replace the safety of human boundaries.”
Florida law prohibits unfair and defective trade practices. The complaint alleges OpenAI’s conduct causes ongoing harm to Floridians and demands accountability. The state seeks damages on behalf of the people of Florida and an end to the deceptive and dangerous practices outlined in the complaint.
In April, the Office of Statewide Prosecution launched a criminal investigation after prosecutors reviewed chat logs between ChatGPT and Phoenix Ikner, the gunman who opened fire at Florida State University on April 17, 2025, claiming two lives and injuring several others. The criminal investigation is ongoing.
