Florida Attorney General Sues OpenAI and Sam Altman Over ChatGPT Harms
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a lawsuit Monday against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, filed in the state’s 10th Judicial Circuit. The 83-page complaint alleges that the defendants failed to exercise reasonable care in designing, marketing, and distributing ChatGPT, causing great danger of addiction, cognitive decline, suicide, and violence. The suit seeks injunctions, a halt to data collection from minors, and penalties under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Uthmeier noted that the action follows two shootings at Florida State University in 2025 and the deaths of two University of South Florida graduate students this year, which were linked to ChatGPT. The attorney general also opened a separate criminal probe into OpenAI in April. The lawsuit seeks to hold Altman personally liable for alleged reckless and willful conduct. OpenAI and Altman did not respond to a request for comment.
What’s reported
Florida AG James Uthmeier filed a first-in-the-nation state-led lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman on Monday.
The 83-page complaint was filed in Florida’s 10th Judicial Circuit.
The suit alleges failure to exercise reasonable care and a heightened duty of care due to dangers of addiction, cognitive decline, suicide, violence, and related harms.
It seeks injunctions, a halt to data collection from minors, and penalties under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
The filing references confirmed ChatGPT-consulted shootings that killed two at Florida State University in 2025 and the death of two University of South Florida graduate students this year.
Uthmeier opened a separate criminal probe into OpenAI in April.
The lawsuit aims to hold Altman personally liable for reckless and willful conduct causing harm to Floridians.
OpenAI and Altman did not respond to Deadline’s request for comment.
Open questions
The impact of the lawsuit on OpenAI’s potential IPO, which has no set date, remains unclear from the article.
Key figures
James Uthmeier: Florida Attorney General
Sam Altman: CEO of OpenAI
Ron DeSantis: Outgoing Governor of Florida
Donald Trump: Former President
Larry Ellison: Oracle CEO
Gavin Newsom: California Governor
Rob Bonta: California Attorney General
Elon Musk: Co-founder of OpenAI (referenced in prior lawsuit)
Sources: deadline.com
