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Florida Sues OpenAI and Sam Altman: The First State Case Over ChatGPT Safety

On June 1, 2026, Florida filed the first state-led lawsuit against OpenAI — and named CEO Sam Altman personally — accusing the company of marketing ChatGPT to the public, including children, while concealing safety risks. Here is what the complaint actually alleges, and what is still unproven.

By The AI Index · Updated Jun 18, 2026 · 5 min read

What the complaint alleges

According to the Florida Attorney General’s office, the lawsuit claims OpenAI “knowingly released and aggressively marketed” ChatGPT to the public — including children — while “concealing serious risks, suppressing internal safety warnings, and deceiving Floridians about the true nature and dangers of the product.” The complaint argues the company and Altman prioritized speed to market and commercial gain over user safety and “disregarded repeated warnings from experts both inside and outside the company.”

A central factual claim concerns minors: the filing states that the free version of ChatGPT has “no gatekeeping or age verification mechanism,” that OpenAI does not require children’s accounts to be linked to a parent’s account, and that — even where accounts are linked — parents cannot request access to what a child has shared with the chatbot.

Why this one is different

Plenty of private plaintiffs have sued AI companies. What makes the Florida action notable is that it is state-led and brought under consumer-protection authority, and that it names the CEO as an individual defendant. Attorney General Uthmeier has said OpenAI and Altman could be liable “for potentially up to billions of dollars” in penalties — a figure that reflects per-violation statutory damages under Florida’s deceptive-practices law, not a proven amount.

The separate criminal investigation

Uthmeier’s office has also confirmed a separate criminal investigation into OpenAI connected to a shooter who allegedly consulted ChatGPT ahead of an April 2025 attack. It is important to keep the two matters distinct: the June 1 filing is a civil consumer-protection lawsuit, while the criminal inquiry is a different track with a different standard of proof. Reporting to date does not establish a proven causal link between the product and any specific act of violence.

OpenAI’s response

OpenAI has denied responsibility for the incidents referenced in the lawsuit and maintains that its systems include extensive safety measures, including content safeguards and crisis-response behavior. As of publication, the allegations are unproven and the case is at the complaint stage.

Frequently asked

Who sued OpenAI and Sam Altman?
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed the lawsuit on June 1, 2026 in the Circuit Court of the Tenth Judicial Circuit, Highlands County. It is the first state-led lawsuit to name both OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman as defendants.

What does the lawsuit allege?
It alleges deceptive and unfair trade practices: that OpenAI marketed ChatGPT to the public including children while concealing risks, suppressing internal safety warnings, and that the free version lacks age verification. The allegations are unproven.

Is this the same as the criminal investigation?
No. The June 1, 2026 filing is a civil consumer-protection lawsuit. The Florida Attorney General is separately running a criminal investigation tied to a shooter who allegedly consulted ChatGPT before an April 2025 attack. The two are distinct matters.

Sources