Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Is Suing The Company Behind ChatGPT For Failing To Protect Children

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, accusing the company of misleading consumers about the safety and reliability of its artificial intelligence chatbot, ChatGPT.

The lawsuit, filed October 23 in Collin County, alleges that OpenAI violated Texas consumer protection laws and failed to adequately protect children from harmful interactions with the chatbot.

According to Paxton, ChatGPT has been associated with dangerous advice, emotional dependency, and inadequate safeguards for minors. The lawsuit also alleges that the company has marketed its product as safe and reliable while failing to adequately disclose the risks.

A central concern is the lack of sufficient parental oversight. Paxton argues that children can interact with ChatGPT and disclose sensitive personal information without parents having meaningful tools to supervise their activity.

The lawsuit seeks financial penalties and court-ordered changes to OpenAI’s practices, including stronger safeguards for minors.

“Powerful technology companies” should not be above the law, Paxton said in announcing the lawsuit.

The lawsuit is part of a broader effort by Texas to hold technology companies accountable for alleged failures to protect young users. Paxton has previously taken legal action against companies including Meta, TikTok, and Roblox over online safety concerns.

OpenAI has said it works with experts to improve ChatGPT’s safeguards and is committed to working with Texas on reasonable AI safety standards.

The case now places the responsibility on the courts to determine whether OpenAI violated Texas law and whether stronger protections are necessary to safeguard Texans, especially children, from the risks of AI technology.