Family sues OpenAI over ChatGPT's alleged role in Florida State University mass shooting

Family of Florida mass shooting victim sues OpenAI in US court

May 11 (Reuters) - The family of a man killed in a 2025 mass shooting at Florida State University has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in a U.S. court, claiming the shooter was aided by ChatGPT in planning the attack. The family of Tiru Chabba filed the lawsuit on Sunday in Florida federal court against the company and the man charged in the shooting, Phoenix Ikner. It is at least the second lawsuit filed in the U.S. accusing OpenAI of facilitating a mass shooting. The lawsuit claims ChatGPT served as a co-conspirator in the shooting, because Ikner planned and carried it out using information provided by ChatGPT in conversations in the preceding months. Despite conversations ⁠about mass shootings, the lethality of Ikner's weapons and when the FSU student union was busiest, the chatbot did not flag or escalate the conversations, the lawsuit claims. The lawsuit, which seeks compensatory and punitive damages, accuses OpenAI of designing a defective product and failing to warn the public about its risks. "Last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri said in a statement. "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity." Pusateri said the company identified an account believed to be associated with the suspect after the shooting and proactively shared it ⁠with law enforcement. The company continues to cooperate with law enforcement and is continuously working to improve detection of harmful intent, he said. Ikner, a deputy sheriff's son, killed two people and wounded four others at the school in Tallahassee, Florida, before he was shot by officers and hospitalized, authorities said. He faces two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted first-degree murder, according to court records. A lawyer for Ikner did not ⁠immediately respond to a request for comment. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced in April that he was launching a criminal investigation into ChatGPT's role in the FSU shooting after prosecutors reviewed the chat logs between Ikner and the program. OpenAI has said it trains its models to refuse requests ⁠that could "meaningfully enable violence," and notifies law enforcement when conversations suggest "an imminent and credible risk of harm to others," with mental health experts helping assess borderline cases. AI companies are facing a growing wave of lawsuits accusing them of failing to prevent chatbot interactions ⁠that plaintiffs say contribute to self-harm, mental illness and violence. Last month, family members of victims of one of Canada'sdeadliest mass shootings filed a group of lawsuits against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging the company knew eight months before the attack that the shooter was planning it on ChatGPT but did not warn police. Reporting by Diana Novak Jones; Editing by Nia Williams Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * Litigation * Criminal * Product Liability Diana Novak Jones Thomson Reuters Diana reports on product liability, litigation, mass torts and the plaintiffs' bar. She previously worked at Law360 and the Chicago Sun-Times.

OpenAI faces grim lawsuit over ChatGPT's alleged role in teen overdose

OpenAI denies wrongdoing, saying the implicated model is no longer available and that ChatGPT is not a substitute for medical care. It's understandable to trust AI chatbots for dinner ideas or tech support, but advice about medical issues should certainly be something you leave to the experts. As informed as they may sound, these chatbots aren't doctors, and we've seen from the sychophantic nature that they may just have a vested interest in keeping you happy. A new lawsuit alleges that this became a dangerous combination when a 19-year-old used ChatGPT for advice on "safely" experimenting with drugs.

Family of Florida university shooting victim sues over suspect's ChatGPT use

Federal lawsuit against OpenAI says alleged gunman had extensive conversations with chatbot over months The family of one of two people killed in an April 2025 shooting at Florida State University (FSU) has filed a federal lawsuit against the ChatGPT creator, OpenAI, alleging that the suspected gunman carried out the attack "with input and information provided to him during conversations with ChatGPT over a period of months, and specifically in the days leading up to the shooting". The lawsuit, first reported by NBC News, was filed on Sunday in Florida's northern federal district court by Vandana Joshi, the widow of Tiru Chabba. Chabba was killed alongside the university dining director, Robert Morales, in the mass shooting on 17 April 2025 that also wounded five others. In the 76-page complaint, the attorneys argue that Phoenix Ikner, the then-FSU student accused of carrying out the shooting, had "extensive conversations" with ChatGPT ahead of the attack, which, the lawyers argue, "would have led any thinking human to conclude he was contemplating an imminent plan to harm others". "However," the complaint alleges, "ChatGPT either defectively failed to connect the dots or else it was never properly designed to recognize the threat." The lawsuit alleges that Ikner used the AI platform to identify weapons and ammunition - and that ChatGPT also explained how to use the weapons, including telling Ikner that "the Glock had no safety, that it was meant to be fired 'quick to use under stress'" and allegedly advised him to "keep his finger off the trigger until he was ready to shoot". The plaintiffs allege that ChatGPT "inflamed and encouraged Ikner's delusions; endorsed his view that he was a sane and rational individual; helped convince him that violent acts can be required to bring about change; assisted him by providing information that he used to plan specifics like what weapons to use and how to use them; and generally provided what he viewed as encouragement in his delusion that he should carry out a massacre, down to the detail of what time would be best to encounter the most traffic on campus." ChatGPT, they argue "should have realized the combination of Ikner's inputs into the product would lead to mass casualties and substantial harm to the public", including the plaintiff. The complaint states that Ikner used ChatGPT for months before the shooting, "where it engaged with him in lengthy discussions" about everything from dating, homework, work-out routines and more. Among those exchanges, the lawsuit alleges, "Ikner and ChatGPT had conversations with recurring themes of terrorism and mass shootings, particularly those occurring at schools". At one point, according to the filing, Ikner allegedly asked the chatbot about "the numbers of fatalities it would require for a mass shooting at a school to get the most attention and make national news". ChatGPT allegedly responded that attacks killing "3 or more people" were more likely to get "widespread media national attention" - and that incidents where "children are involved, even 2-3 victims can draw more attention". The lawsuit also alleges that, on the day of the shooting, Ikner asked ChatGPT what would happen to the shooter. "ChatGPT described the legal process, sentencing, and incarceration outlook," the lawsuit said. In a statement to the Guardian, a spokesperson for OpenAI disputed the allegations in the lawsuit that the chatbot holds responsibility for the shooting. The attack at FSU "was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime", the spokesperson said. "After learning of the incident, we identified an account believed to be associated with the suspect and proactively shared this information with law enforcement. "We continue to cooperate with authorities. In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity." The OpenAI spokesperson's statement continued: "ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise." The new lawsuit came about a month after lawyers for Morales's family said they were planning to file their own lawsuit against ChatGPT and OpenAI. Meanwhile, after reviewing Ikner's chat logs, Florida's attorney general, James Uthmeier, on 21 April announced that he was launching a criminal investigation against OpenAI tied to the FSU shooting, stating: "If ChatGPT were a person, it would be facing charges for murder." Ikner is tentatively scheduled to go on trial in October on charges of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty.

OpenAI Sued for Mass Shooting: "If ChatGPT Were a Person, It Would Be Facing Murder Charges"

Can't-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech The surviving widow of a mass shooting victim is suing OpenAI for ChatGPT's alleged role in stoking the killer's deadly rampage -- the latest in a string of lawsuits against the Silicon Valley AI firm claiming that its tech has enabled stalking, murder, and mass casualty events. The lawsuit was filed in Florida on Sunday by Vandana Joshi, whose spouse, Tiru Chabba, was shot and killed by then-20-year-old Florida State University (FSU) student Phoenix Ikner, according to NBC News. Alarming chat logs first obtained last month by The Florida Observer revealed that Ikner carried out extensive conversations with ChatGPT over the course of months, turning to the chatbot as a confidante with which he discussed a range of revealing -- and disturbing -- topics: his loneliness and sexual frustrations; explicit fantasies about a minor; suicidality; fascination with Hitler, Nazis, and racial stereotyping; and his interest in mass killings, including school shootings at Columbine High School and Virginia Tech. According to the lawsuit, Ikner also uploaded pictures of firearms he'd obtained to ChatGPT and quizzed the chatbot on how a shooting at FSU might be covered in the media. In response, the chatbot allegedly told Ikner that "if children are involved" in a shooting, "even 2-3 victims can draw more attention," and provided Ikner with information and instructions about ammunition and how to use different guns. It also advised Ikner on what it said was the best time to commit a school shooting -- advice that the killer appeared to follow. Chabba and another adult victim were killed, and multiple others wounded. "Ikner had extensive conversations with ChatGPT which, cumulatively, would have led any thinking human to conclude he was contemplating an imminent plan to harm others," reads the lawsuit. "However, ChatGPT either defectively failed to connect the dots or else it was never properly designed to recognize them." The lawsuit comes as ChatGPT is also being criminally investigated by Florida police for its alleged role in the FSU killings. "If ChatGPT were a person," Attorney General James Uthmeier said last month in a statement announcing the investigation, "it would be facing charges for murder." In a statement to NBC, OpenAI said that "last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime." "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," the statement continued. "ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise." But as both reporting and Joshi's lawsuit detail, that doesn't feel like a truthful accounting of events. Ikner appears to have had a close, personal relationship with the AI, and his months of sprawling conversations with the chatbot seem to reveal a dark inner portrait of a troubled young man careening toward a devastating day of violence -- all the while divulging this inner world to a close friend that, as the lawsuit claims, failed to recognize copious warning signs. Incredibly, this isn't the only mass shooting in which ChatGPT has allegedly played a consequential role. OpenAI is also being sued by the families of seven victims of February's horrific school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, where six young students -- all aged between 12 and 13 -- and a teacher were killed, and dozens of others wounded. Months before the shooting, as The Wall Street Journal reported, OpenAI's automated moderation tools had flagged the 18-year-old shooter's chats for content violations over graphic descriptions of violence. Safety staffers were reportedly so alarmed by the chats that they urged OpenAI leaders to contact local law enforcement; the OpenAI higher-ups ultimately chose not to.

OpenAI Faces Lawsuit Over Claims ChatGPT Encouraged Teen's Fatal Overdose - Decrypt

OpenAI said the version of ChatGPT involved has since been updated and is no longer publicly available. The family of a deceased 19-year-old California college student is suing OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging that ChatGPT encouraged dangerous drug use and recommended combinations of substances that contributed to the teen's fatal overdose. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in California Superior Court in San Francisco County, claims ChatGPT provided Samuel Nelson with advice about mixing substances, including kratom and Xanax, recommended dosages, and reassured him during conversations about drug use. According to the complaint, the chatbot shifted from refusing to discuss recreational drug use to providing personalized guidance after OpenAI released the GPT-4o model. Leila Turner-Scott, Nelson's mother, believed her son was using ChatGPT primarily for homework help and productivity tasks before the chatbot allegedly began advising him on drug use. "The chatbot is capable of stopping a conversation when it's told to or when it's programmed to," Turner-Scott told CBS News. "And they took away the programming that did that, and they allowed it to continue advising self-harm." Nelson, a psychology student at the University of California, Merced, died from an accidental overdose in May 2025. The lawsuit alleges OpenAI designed ChatGPT to maximize engagement through features including persistent memory and emotionally validating responses, while the chatbot reassured Nelson about mixing depressants and suggested ways to intensify drug use while minimizing risks. The lawsuit alleges OpenAI relaxed safeguards in GPT-4o to avoid sounding "judgmental" or "preachy" when users discussed risky behavior. It also challenges conversational AI features, including personalized responses, persistent memory, and human-like interactions. According to the Tech Justice Law Project, which, along with the Social Media Victims Law Center and the Tech Accountability and Competition Project, is representing the family, OpenAI was informed of the lawsuit and expected the case. "Plaintiffs are seeking restitution and injunctive relief that include requiring changes to key design components that resulted in Sam's death," a Tech Justice Law Project spokesperson told Decrypt. The lawsuit comes as OpenAI faces multiple lawsuits and investigations involving ChatGPT. The company is already fighting copyright lawsuits from The New York Times, authors, and publishers over allegations that it used copyrighted material to train AI models without permission. Earlier this month, the family of a victim killed in the 2025 Florida State University mass shooting filed a federal lawsuit alleging ChatGPT provided the gunman with firearms guidance and tactical advice before the attack. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier had previously launched an investigation into OpenAI, citing concerns related to child safety, criminal misuse, self-harm, and national security. OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Decrypt.

A woman turned to ChatGPT before poisoning 3 men in South Korea, police say

SEOUL, South Korea -- "What happens if you take sleeping pills and alcohol together?" Those are the questions police in South Korea say Kim So-young asked ChatGPT shortly before she gave two men a mix of alcohol and benzodiazepine, leading to their deaths. Prosecutors allege Kim gave the drugs to three men, two of whom died, while the other was injured. Investigators have turned ChatGPT conversations forensically extracted from Kim's phone in an attempt to show intent. "This is not only significant as evidence in itself, but also because the very fact that conversations with ChatGPT are being admitted as direct evidence in a murder case is highly noteworthy," Nam Eonho, a senior attorney at the law firm Vincent and counsel for the family of one of the victims, said in a phone interview. "If such evidence were not admitted, it would be difficult to prove the defendant's intent to kill, which is a key element of the crime," Nam said. NBC News contacted South Korea's Supreme Prosecutors' Office, which oversees the Seoul Central district Prosecutors' Office handling the case, for comment. The office did not immediately respond. Kim has denied any intent to kill, saying in court that the deaths were accidental. Nam said the chat log evidence contradicts that. The case, which may be the first of its kind in South Korea. Yet it's part of a growing series of high-profile criminal cases in which people are accused of using AI programs to aid violent crimes. Most publicly documented cases have involved ChatGPT, but Google's Gemini was recently named in a civil suit that alleged the chatbot aided a man who planned to commit a mass casualty event near Miami's airport. Experts say use of such tools for nefarious means is likely to accelerate as chatbots become more widespread, as online search did when it debuted. As OpenAI faces several lawsuits tied to allegations its tool was used to carry out crimes, the AI industry is just beginning to grapple with its role in mitigating physical harms and how to work with law enforcement. OpenAI did not respond to questions about the case or how often it refers cases to law enforcement, including questions about which law enforcement agencies it may be working with. It pointed to a letter written in response to a shooting in Canada and a blog post about community safety. It is not yet known whether the judge presiding over Kim's case in South Korea will admit the ChatGPT logs as evidence. The trial is ongoing. The case has drawn significant attention in the country. Local media reported that a courtroom overflowed with journalists and observers at the latest hearing, on May 7. In February, police arrested Kim on charges of murder and violating South Korea's Narcotics Control Act, alleging she gave men toxic drinks containing benzodiazepine and other drugs in the guise of a hangover cure. Beginning in mid-December, Kim sought out dates with men, took them to a motel and then gave them the substance, in fear of unwanted physical contact, authorities allege. The first victim survived after a two-day coma. Authorities said Kim then consulted ChatGPT about dosages and adjusted them before she gave them to the second and third victims. The full chat logs have not been released and instead have been quoted and cited by the police. Police have determined that the third victim, whose estate is represented by Nam, met Kim on Feb. 9 at a motel in Seoul. She handed him the beverage laced with medication, Nam said. After the man collapsed, Nam said, she used his phone to order food delivery and left with it. The police arrived the following day, after the man had already died. Nam said an autopsy report he had seen concluded he died from drug poisoning. "In a sense, the suspect received guidance from ChatGPT and then used that information as a means to carry out the crime," Nam said. "This makes the case distinctive in that ChatGPT searches were directly utilized as a tool in the commission of the offense." While the police are also using social media posts and CCTV cameras in addition to the chat log evidence, it is the conversations with ChatGPT that may prove critical in determining whether Kim meant to kill the victims. The next trial date is set for June. Kim's case echoes a growing slate of similar incidents in North America, where the alleged perpetrators used ChatGPT to ask for instructions crucial to the crime. The systems' developers have distanced themselves from illegal actions and the pending legal cases in the U.S. and Canada. The cases have put pressure on OpenAI. After an 18-year-old shooter killed eight people in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, in February, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wrote a letter apologizing to the community for not having informed law enforcement of the shooter's account. The perpetrator described scenarios involving gun violence to ChatGPT for several days before the account was banned in June, eight months before the shooting. The company did not alert law enforcement. In April, families of those killed and injured filed seven federal lawsuits against OpenAI, alleging it failed to take measures that could have prevented the shooting. "While words can never be enough, I believe an apology is necessary to recognize the harm and irreversible loss your community has suffered," Altman wrote, committing to work with authorities to prevent future crimes. The suspect in the shooting at Florida State University in April 2025 was in "constant communication with ChatGPT," the state's attorney general, James Uthmeier, said at a news conference. The attack killed two people. Uthmeier launched a criminal investigation to determine the role OpenAI's product played in the attack. He said ChatGPT "advised the shooter on what type of gun to use, on which ammo went with which gun, on whether or not a gun would be useful in short range." A spokesperson for OpenAI said at the time that "ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," adding that the responses the chatbot gave "could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity." The family of one of the victims in the FSU shooting sued OpenAI on Sunday. ChatGPT and generative AI have also been used "to research explosives and ignition mechanisms" in the January 2025 Tesla explosion outside Trump International Hotel Las Vegas, according to Las Vegas police. A North Carolina school therapist is alleged to have used ChatGPT to research "lethal and incapacitating drug combinations that could be ingested and injected" to poison her husband last year. In October, a 17-year-old Florida teenager is alleged to have used the tool in an attempt to stage his own kidnapping. Experts say the admission of ChatGPT and similar tools in criminal cases is nascent. Yet there is scarcely a legal process it has left undisrupted. Lawyers and victims use chatbots to build cases, sometimes with so many errors that judges ban using them in their courtrooms. Some defendants use them to doctor evidence or to call genuine evidence into question. Now, an increasing body of casework pointing to using generative AI in crimes is emerging. For many in the field, the cases that are in the public eye are only the tip of the iceberg. "It's unsurprising that criminals use chatbots that are willing to help plan crimes," said Max Tegmark, a physicist and machine learning researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and chair of the Future of Life Institute, a nonprofit organization that seeks to reduce risks from transformative technologies "There are fewer safety standards for AI than there are for sandwiches," Tegmark said. "The obvious solution is binding safety standards such that companies can't release AI systems until they refuse criminal activity." Some argue that using a chatbot is not so different from a simple Google search, with both producing digital information trails showing how criminals planned their actions. But Nam, the lawyer in the South Korean case, said chatbots create a new type of scenario. "The real problem is that this conversational format may allow potential criminals to engage in 'dialogue' with ChatGPT without a sense of guilt," he said. "If the suspect had asked a human being about the dosage or administration of a toxic substance, that person would naturally question the intent -- why someone would want such specific information about administering poison," he said. "However, ChatGPT does not filter such questions through ethical judgment." As the industry begins to grapple with the misuse of its technology, it faces similar questions about safeguarding as breakthroughs of the past, such as seat belts in cars, moderation on social media or warning labels on potentially toxic products. "We will reach an equilibrium that everyone feels comfortable with," said Anat Lior, an assistant professor of law at Drexel University who has studied AI governance and accountability. "We're just not sure what that balancing act looks like yet."

Their son died of a drug overdose after consulting ChatGPT. Now they're suing OpenAI.

Journalist Jo Ling Kent joined CBS News in July 2023 as the senior business and technology correspondent for CBS News. Kent has more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of technology and business in the U.S., as well as the emergence of China as a global economic power. A Texas couple whose son died of an overdose in 2025 after using OpenAI's ChatGPT tool to get information about drugs sued the technology company on Tuesday, blaming the AI platform for his death. Leila Turner-Scott and her husband, Angus Scott, are seeking to hold OpenAI and its creators accountable after their son, Sam Nelson, who was 19 when he died, turned to ChatGPT to advise him on using drugs. The AI platform provided advice it was not qualified to dispense, they alleged in the lawsuit, claiming that Sam would still be alive if not for ChatGPT's flawed programming. Specifically, the platform advised the couple's son that it was safe to take kratom, a supplement used in drinks, pills and other products, in combination with Xanax, a widely used anti-anxiety medication, according to the suit, filed in California state court. "This is a heartbreaking situation, and our thoughts are with the family," OpenAI said in a statement to CBS News. The company also said that Sam interacted with a version of ChatGPT that has since been updated and is no longer available to the public. "ChatGPT is not a substitute for medical or mental health care, and we have continued to strengthen how it responds in sensitive and acute situations with input from mental health experts," OpenAiI said. "The safeguards in ChatGPT today are designed to identify distress, safely handle harmful requests and guide users to real-world help. This work is ongoing, and we continue to improve it in close consultation with clinicians." Turner-Scott told CBS News in an exclusive interview that while she knew her son was using ChatGPT as a productivity tool and for homework help. But she said she was unaware that he was using it for guidance on drugs, alleging that the AI tool eventually recommended a lethal combination of substances. She holds OpenAI and its creators responsible for Sam's death, alleging that the company "bypassed safety guards" and could have implemented restrictions to avoid such tragedies. "The chatbot is capable of stopping a conversation when it's told to or when it's programmed to. ...And they took away the programming that did that, and they allowed it to continue advising self-harm," Turner-Scott told CBS News. Angus Scott also said ChatGPT acted as a medical doctor in its exchanges with his stepson, even though it was not licensed to offer medical advice. "It's providing information to the public about safety concerns, about drug interactions, about all of this information," he told CBS News. Without proper safety protocols and more rigorous safety testing, ChatGPT "can dispense that knowledge in a way that is very dangerous to people," Angus Scott said. "It can start feeding psychosis. It can start misrepresenting things to people. And while it is trying to validate users, it's also undermining any chance that that user has to get a grounded opinion, you know, and so it kind of takes them away from reality," he added. Turner-Scott told CBS News that she is confident that her son, who would have been a rising college sophomore, would support the steps the family is taking to hold the makers of AI chatbots accountable for the potential adverse effects they can have on users' lives. "He would not want anyone else to be harmed like he was," she said.

Can ChatGPT be charged in a murder? Florida wants to find out

New York (AFP) - Before he opened fire on the Florida State University campus last year, killing two people and wounding six others, Phoenix Ikner had a conversation. Not with a friend, a parent or anyone who might have talked him out of it -- but with an AI chatbot. According to evidence gathered by Florida's attorney general, the student had asked ChatGPT which weapon and ammunition would be best suited for his attack, and when and where he could inflict the most casualties. The chatbot, investigators say, answered his questions. Now Attorney General James Uthmeier wants to know whether that makes OpenAI a criminal. "If the thing on the other side of the screen was a person, we would charge it with homicide," he said, announcing a criminal investigation into ChatGPT maker OpenAI and leaving open the possibility of charges against the company or its employees. The case surrounding the April, 2025 shooting has thrust a provocative question into the legal spotlight: Can the creators of an artificial intelligence be held criminally liable for the role their AI played in a crime -- or even a suicide? Legal experts say it's a realistic, if deeply complicated, proposition. -- Criminal product? -- Criminal prosecutions of corporations are possible under US law, though they remain relatively uncommon. Late last month, Purdue Pharma was hit with more than $5 billion in criminal fines and penalties for its role in fueling the opioid crisis. Volkswagen was previously found guilty in the emissions cheating scandal, Pfizer over its promotion of the anti-inflammatory drug Bextra and Exxon for the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska. But those cases all involved human decisions -- executives, salespeople or engineers who made choices and cut corners. The Ikner case is different, and that difference is precisely what makes it so legally treacherous. "Ultimately, it was a product that encouraged this crime, that did the act of the crime," said Matthew Tokson, a law professor at the University of Utah. "That's what makes this case so unique and so tricky." Legal experts consulted by AFP say the two most plausible charges would be negligence or recklessness -- the latter involving a deliberate choice to ignore known risks or safety obligations. Such charges are often treated as misdemeanors rather than felonies, meaning lighter sentences if convicted. The bar, however, is high. "Because this is such a frontier issue, a more compelling, more clear-cut case would probably involve internal documents recognizing these risks and maybe not taking them seriously enough," Tokson said. "In theory, you could get liability without it," he said. "But in practice, I think that'd be difficult." In criminal law, "the burden of proof is higher," noted Brandon Garrett, a law professor at Duke University -- with prosecutors required to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. OpenAI, for its part, insists ChatGPT bears no responsibility for the attack. "We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise," the company said. -- Civil or criminal? -- For those seeking accountability, a civil lawsuit may offer a more viable path. Such an approach might push companies to design their products more carefully -- or at least force them to reckon with the human cost of getting it wrong, said Tokson. Several civil cases have already been filed against AI platforms in the US -- many involving suicides -- though none has yet resulted in a judgment against the companies. In December, the family of Suzanne Adams sued OpenAI in California court, alleging that ChatGPT contributed to the murder of the Connecticut retiree by her own son. Newer versions of ChatGPT have introduced additional safeguards, acknowledged Matthew Bergman, founding attorney of the Social Media Victims Law Center. "I'm not saying that they are adequate guardrails, but there are more guardrails in effect," he said. A criminal conviction, even with a modest sentence, could still inflict serious damage, including a "big reputational impact," Tokson said. But for Garrett, prosecutions -- however dramatic -- are no replacement for the regulatory frameworks that Congress and the Trump administration have so far failed to put in place. That, he said, would be "a much more sensible system."

OpenAI Faces Federal Lawsuit Over ChatGPT's Alleged Role in FSU Mass Shooting - Decrypt

Florida's Attorney General has launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI's role in the incident. Vandana Joshi, whose husband was killed in the April 2025 Florida State University mass shooting, filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI Sunday, alleging that ChatGPT enabled the attack by providing firearms guidance and tactical advice to the shooter. The lawsuit alleges Phoenix Ikner shared images of firearms with ChatGPT and received instructions on how to use them in the weeks before April 17, 2025. According to the filing, ChatGPT allegedly told Ikner that weekday lunchtimes between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. were peak hours at the student union -- and Ikner began his attack at 11:57 a.m. ChatGPT also allegedly claimed that a shooting was more likely to gain national attention "if children are involved," adding that, "even 2-3 victims can draw more attention." Per the complaint, Ikner also shared images of firearms he had acquired with ChatGPT, with the chatbot responding with firing techniques for a Glock handgun, including "advising him to keep his finger off the trigger until he was ready to shoot." "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri told NBC News, denying the allegations. Joshi's complaint alleges that where "any thinking human" would have concluded that Ikner's conversations pointed to an "imminent plan to harm others," the chatbot "defectively failed to connect the dots or else it was never properly designed to recognize the threat." The lawsuit adds to legal pressure on OpenAI, with Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier last month launching a criminal investigation into the firm and its ChatGPT product. The chatbot "advised the shooter on what type of gun to use" and on types of ammunition, Uthmeier said, adding that, "if ChatGPT were a person, it would be facing charges for murder." The Florida Office of Statewide Prosecution subpoenaed OpenAI for information and records including policies on user threats and cooperation with law enforcement. The case stems from a mass shooting at Florida State University in April 2025, in which Phoenix Ikner, a former FSU student, allegedly killed two people and injured six others. Ikner faces charges of murder and attempted murder in connection with the attack. The incident has drawn scrutiny over the role AI systems may play in facilitating real-world violence. While AI companies have typically avoided liability for user-generated content, this lawsuit seeks to establish a new precedent for holding them accountable when their systems allegedly provide guidance for criminal acts. This isn't the first such lawsuit targeting OpenAI. In April, seven families of Canadian mass shooting victims sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman in U.S. court. At the time, Jay Edelson, the attorney representing the Canadian families, said he planned to file another two dozen lawsuits in the following weeks against the company on behalf of other people affected by the shooting.

Lawsuit blames ChatGPT maker OpenAI for bot helping plan a mass shooting

The widow of a man killed in a mass shooting last year at Florida State University is suing ChatGPT maker OpenAI, blaming the company's artificial intelligence chatbot for contributing to the tragedy. Prosecutors say they believe ChatGPT advised Phoenix Ikner on which location and time of day would allow for the most potential victims; what type of gun and ammunition to use; and whether a gun would be useful at short range. "OpenAI knew this would happen. It's happened before and it was only a matter of time before it happened again," Vandana Joshi said in a statement Monday. Her husband Tiru Chabba was one of two people killed, and six more were wounded. Drew Pusateri, a spokesperson for OpenAI, denied wrongdoing in "this terrible crime." "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," Pusateri said in an email Monday to The Associated Press. The lawsuit was filed Sunday in federal court. Ikner faces two counts of first-degree murder and several counts of attempted murder in the shooting that terrorized the campus in Tallahassee, Florida's capital, in April 2025. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty. Ikner has pleaded not guilty. Separately, in April, Florida's attorney general said there was a rare criminal investigation into ChatGPT over whether the app offered advice to Ikner. Joshi said in a statement released by her lawyer that OpenAI "put their profits over our safety and it killed my husband. They need to be responsible before another family has to go through this." Several civil lawsuits have sought damages from AI and tech companies over the influence of chatbots and social media on loved ones' mental health. In March, a jury in Los Angeles found both Meta and YouTube liable for harms to children using their services. In New Mexico, a jury determined that Meta knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.

OpenAI sued over ChatGPT's alleged role in guiding FSU shooter

OpenAI is facing a lawsuit alleging that ChatGPT played a role in a mass shooting at Florida State University last April that left two people dead. Vandana Joshi, the widow of Tiru Chabba, who was killed alongside the university dining director Robert Morales, filed the federal lawsuit against OpenAI in Florida on Sunday. The complaint also names Phoenix Ikner, the man accused in the shooting, as a defendant, citing his "extensive conversations" with ChatGPT and claiming the chatbot "either defectively failed to connect the dots or else was never properly designed to recognize the threat." According to the complaint, Ikner, then a student at FSU, shared with ChatGPT images of firearms he had acquired. The chatbot then allegedly explained how to use them, "telling him the Glock had no safety, that it was meant to be fired 'quick to use under stress' and advising him to keep his finger off the trigger until he was ready to shoot." The suit said Ikner began his attack at FSU by following the instructions. OpenAI has pushed back on the allegations. "Last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri told NBC News in an email. Pusateri wrote that the company worked with law enforcement after learning of the incident and continues to do so. "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," he added. "ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise." But Joshi's complaint argues that OpenAI should have realized Ikner's specific chats would lead to "mass casualties and substantial harm to the public." "ChatGPT inflamed and encouraged Ikner's delusions; endorsed his view that he was a sane and rational individual; helped convince him that violent acts can be required to bring about change," it said, adding that the software "generally provided what he viewed as encouragement in his delusion that she should carry out a massacre, down to the detail of what time would be best to encounter the most traffic on campus." The lawsuit is one of a growing number of cases in which families and law enforcement say ChatGPT or other AI chatbots played a role in violence or crime. Tech companies are also facing growing scrutiny over their safeguards for users experiencing mental health issues. Last month, OpenAI was sued by seven families over a school shooting in Canada. And last year, the company was sued by the family of a teenage boy who died by suicide in a different landmark lawsuit accusing OpenAI of making it too easy to bypass ChatGPT's safeguards. Concerns have grown over the potential for AI chatbots to fuel delusions in people, especially those who are already vulnerable to mental health problems. AI chatbots are notorious for their people-pleasing tendencies, and OpenAI itself has attempted to rein in ChatGPT's sycophantic behavior through various updates. Over several months leading up to the shooting, Ikner engaged ChatGPT in lengthy discussions about "his interests in Hitler, Nazis, fascism, national socialism, Christian nationalism, and perceptions about 'Jews' and 'blacks' by different political ideologies and social groups," according to the lawsuit. Ikner also discussed the Columbine High School shooting, the Virginia Tech shooting and other mass shooting incidents with ChatGPT, the lawsuit says. It said ChatGPT "flattered" and "praised" Ikner, who told the chatbot about his loneliness and depression, and failed to "connect the dots" when Ikner began raising questions about suicide, terrorism and mass shootings. Instead, the lawsuit said, the bot continued to engage when Ikner asked about the busiest times at the FSU student union, what possible media coverage would look like in the event of a shooting, and potential legal consequences for the shooter. At one point, the lawsuit alleges, ChatGPT said that it's much more likely for a shooting to gain national attention "if children are involved, even 2-3 victims can draw more attention." Later, on the day of the shooting, the lawsuit says, Ikner asked about what "the legal process, sentencing, and incarceration outlook" would be. Last month, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a criminal investigation into OpenAI and ChatGPT after reviewing Ikner's chat logs. "If ChatGPT were a person," Uthmeier said in a statement, "it would be facing charges for murder."

Family of FSU shooting victim sues OpenAI over suspect's ChatGPT use

The family of a victim in last year's shooting at Florida State University has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging its ChatGPT chatbot "co-conspired" with the suspected shooter ahead of the crime. In a lawsuit filed in a Florida federal court Monday, the family of Tiru Chabba, one of two people killed in April 2025, argued the suspected gunman Phoenix Ikner carried out the mass shooting with "input and information" provided by ChatGPT in the months and days leading up to the attack. Like various lawsuits recently filed against social media and artificial intelligence firms, the victim's family alleges OpenAI "failed to warn the public" or minimized or misrepresented the risks and dangers of its flagship chatbot. Further, OpenAI allegedly failed to create a product that would not discuss these crimes, or alert a human for law enforcement investigation, according to the lawsuit, which was first reported by NBC News. The suit comes less than a month after Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI and its chatbot, stating the suspected gunman communicated with ChatGPT before the shooting. Chabba, who was 45 at the time, and 57-year-old Robert Morales were both killed in the shooting, and six others were injured. Amid Ikner's alleged months of talking with ChatGPT about imminent harm, Chabba's lawyers said the chatbot either "defectively failed to connect the dots" or was not designed to recognize the threat. ChatGPT allegedly explained how to use the guns Ikner obtained, including how to load and operate them and that one weapon had no safety, meaning it could be fired quickly under stress. The chat logs also showed Ikner discussing other mass shootings, along with his interests in Adolf Hitler, Nazis and different political ideologies' perceptions of certain races. He also allegedly discussed his emotional struggles, loneliness and depression, prompting ChatGPT to recommend seeking real-world support, including from therapists. Though when he asked about suicide, ChatGPT provided statistical analysis, only using the pre-training suicide hotline response twice, the lawsuit alleged. When reached for comment, an OpenAI's spokesperson said the shooting "was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime." The spokesperson said the company helped identify Ikner's OpenAI account and it continues "to cooperate with authorities." "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," the spokesperson said, adding, "We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise." OpenAI released a blog post about its safety measures late last month, including training the models to refuse certain requests and recognize signs of risk of harm, including self-harm. Trained personnel are responsible for reviewing conversations that are flagged by automatic detection systems. OpenAI is facing a separate suit in Canada about how its company leadership failed to contact law enforcement after its automatic detection systems flagged concerns about the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School shooting suspect's ChatGPT conversations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman later apologized for not alerting law enforcement to the account they banned. Lawyers for Chabba's family said they are anticipating OpenAI to claim Section 230 of the Communications Act will grant them immunity against the charges. The 1996 liability shield largely protects technology companies from being held legally responsible for third-party or user consent. But the family's attorneys argue OpenAI is not protected by Section 230, as the company is "in the business of developing, distributing and marketing a product which engages in direct and active communications with users." "The product provides reasoning and analysis for a user," rather than being a "passive repository for information by public users and third parties," the lawsuit stated, adding the AI firm is responsible for the creation and development of information they use to train these chatbots.

'Violent acts can be required...': ChatGPT maker OpenAI sued for helping Florida University shooter plan timing, targets and gun selection in US

The widow of a Florida State University shooting victim is suing OpenAI, alleging ChatGPT aided the attacker in planning the massacre. The lawsuit claims the AI provided advice on timing, weapon choice, and even encouraged the shooter's delusions. OpenAI denies responsibility, stating ChatGPT offered factual information and did not promote illegal activity. The widow of a man killed in a mass shooting last year at Florida State University has sued ChatGPT maker OpenAI and has blamed the company's artificial intelligence chatbot for contributing to the tragedy, reports Fortune. According to the lawsuit, OpenAI enabled the attack and reportedly advised Phoenix Ikner, the man accused in the shooting. From helping the accused in determining which time and location of the day would give him the most potential victims to telling him what type of gun and ammunition to use (whether a gun would be useful at short range), ChatGPT helped the attacker plan the attack. According to the lawsuit, the chatbot helped the accused plan the logistics, the timing of the attack, and also helped the accused identify which guns to use. On the basis of photos uploaded, the ChatGpt told Ikner that the handgun he obtained was "meant to be fired 'quick to use under stress,'" according to the lawsuit. The chatbot also allegedly suggested he keep his finger off the trigger until he was ready to shoot. ALSO READ: Putin meets former German teacher Vera Gurevich Tiru Chabba's family alleged that the accused texted ChatGPT thousands of times before carrying out the shooting. "OpenAI knew this would happen. It's happened before, and it was only a matter of time before it happened again," Vandana Joshi said in a statement Monday. According to the lawsuit, ChatGPT allegedly told Phoenix Ikner that shootings involving children tend to receive more national attention, noting that even "2-3 victims can draw more attention." On the day of the attack, Ikner also asked the chatbot about "the legal process, sentencing, and incarceration outlook," as per the court filing. "ChatGPT inflamed and encouraged Ikner's delusions; endorsed his view that he was a sane and rational individual; helped convince him that violent acts can be required to bring about change," the lawsuit said. ALSO READ: Meta to lay off 8,000 employees on May 20 The lawsuit was filed by Vandana Joshi, the widow of Tiru Chabba, who was killed alongside the university dining director Robert Morales, as per NBC News. One of Joshi's attorneys accused ChatGPT of placing "the dollar above the lives of everyday average Americans." "The unique thing about this is we are not going to allow the American public to have clinic run on them by OpenAI and ChatGPT," Bakari Sellers said. The victim's family cited citing the accused's "extensive conversations" with ChatGPT, saying that OpenAI failed to effectively detect a threat in ChatGPT's conversations with Ikner, claiming the chatbot "either defectively failed to connect the dots or else was never properly designed to recognize the threat." ChatGPT "provided what he viewed as encouragement in his delusion," the lawsuit says. "OpenAI built a system that stayed in the conversation, perpetuated it, accepted Ikner's framing, elaborated on it, and asked tangential follow-up questions to keep Ikner engaged," the lawsuit states. "ChatGPT's design created an obvious and foreseeable risk of harm to the public that was not adequately controlled." Tiru Chabba's family is seeking unspecified compensation and is urging OpenAI to strengthen safety measures in ChatGPT. Family attorney Amy Willbanks said the company should address and remove potential risks associated with the chatbot before they are made available to users. Drew Pusateri, a spokesperson for OpenAI, denied wrongdoing in "this terrible crime" and has pushed back on the claim that its product holds responsibility for the shooting. "Last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri told NBC News in an email. Pusateri wrote that the company worked with law enforcement after learning of the incident and continues to do so. "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," he added. "ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise."

Lawsuit blames ChatGPT maker OpenAI for bot helping plan a mass shooting - The Korea Times

A person stands next to the logo of ChatGPT, an AI-powered chatbot by OpenAI at Bharat Mandapam, one of the venues for AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, Feb. 17, 2026. Reuters-Yonhap The widow of a man killed in last year's mass shooting at Florida State University is suing ChatGPT maker OpenAI, blaming the company's artificial intelligence chatbot for giving advice on how to carry out the rampage. The lawsuit comes after state authorities disclosed that ChatGPT gave information to the shooter about time and location to maximize victims on campus, as well as the type of gun and ammunition to use. Authorities say he was also told that an attack can get more media attention if children are involved. "OpenAI knew this would happen. It's happened before and it was only a matter of time before it happened again," Vandana Joshi, whose husband Tiru Chabba was one of two people killed, said in a statement Monday. OpenAI denied any wrongdoing in "this terrible crime." "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," Drew Pusateri, a spokesman for the company, said in an email to The Associated Press. Six people were also wounded in the April 2025 shooting in Tallahassee, when the alleged gunman, Phoenix Ikner, walked in and out of campus buildings and green spaces while firing a handgun. It took place on a weekday just before lunchtime near the school's Student Union, which has food and shops. The lawsuit says Ikner, a Florida State student, asked ChatGPT about the busiest times there. The suit, filed Sunday in federal court, says OpenAI should have built ChatGPT with guardrails to let someone know that police may need to investigate "to prevent a specific plan for imminent harm to the public." Separately, in April, Florida's attorney general said there was a rare criminal investigation into ChatGPT over whether the AI tool offered advice to Ikner, 21. He has pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and several counts of attempted murder. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty. Joshi's husband was a 45-year-old father of two from Greenville, South Carolina, and a regional vice president of the food service vendor Aramark Collegiate Hospitality. The other man who was killed, Robert Morales, 57, was a campus dining coordinator at Florida State. OpenAI "put their profits over our safety and it killed my husband. They need to be responsible before another family has to go through this," Joshi said in a statement released by her lawyer. OpenAI is currently valued at $852 billion. Several lawsuits have sought damages from AI and tech companies over the influence of chatbots and social media on loved ones' mental health. In March, a jury in Los Angeles found both Meta and YouTube liable for harms to children using their services. In New Mexico, a jury determined that Meta knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.

ChatGPT told FSU shooter that targeting children would 'draw more attention': lawsuit

OpenAI's ChatGPT allegedly told the suspect in last year's deadly Florida State University shooting that targeting kids would "draw more attention" to his heinous crime, according to a new lawsuit. The family of one of two victims gunned down at FSU's Tallahassee campus slapped OpenAI with the lawsuit on Sunday -- accusing the platform of enabling the alleged perp, Phoenix Ikner, to carry out the attack last summer. Despite Ikner's sickening and expensive conversations with ChatGPT in the lead up to the bloodshed, the artificial intelligence company failed to detect the threat ahead of time, the suit charges. "Ikner had extensive conversations with ChatGPT which, cumulatively, would have led any thinking human to conclude he was contemplating an imminent plan to harm others," the court filing states. "However, ChatGPT either defectively failed to connect the dots or else it was never properly designed to recognize the threat." Ikner, the 20-year-old stepson of a sheriff's deputy, is accused of killing Tiru Chabba, 45, and Robert Morales, 57, when he opened fire outside FSU's student union on April 15 last year. Six students were also wounded before police eventually shot Ikner -- leaving his face disfigured. Ikner, who was a student at the college, had allegedly plotted the shooting by asking the chatbot for advice on what gun to use, what ammunition to buy and what part of campus would be the most crowded, according to the suit filed by Chabba's relatives. At one point, Ikner allegedly asked ChatGPT how many fatalities it would take for the shooting to make national news, the court papers charge. In response, the chatbot offered guidance that targeting children would generate media coverage, as well as the overall victim count. "Another common trigger is the overall victim count: if 5+ total victims (dead + injured), it's much more likely to break through, and if children are involved, even 2-3 victims can draw more attention," the chatbot said in its response. "Context also matters -- fewer victims can still lead to national coverage if it happens at an elementary school or major college, if the shooter is a student or staff member, or if there's something culturally or politically charged (for example, racial motives, a manifesto, or mental-health implications)." Elsewhere, Ikner allegedly also bluntly asked what would happen if a mass shooting unfolded at the school -- but ChatGPT still didn't flag or escalate the tourbling conversation for human review, the suit states. "After telling Ikner this, he would then ask what would happen to the shooter and ChatGPT described the legal process, sentencing, and incarceration outlook. But it still did not flag or escalate the conversation. These final conversations took place on the day of the shooting," the filing reads. "ChatGPT inflamed and encouraged Ikner's delusions; endorsed his view that he was a sane and rational individual; helped convince him that violent acts can be required to bring about change; assisted him by providing information that he used to plan specifics like what weapons to use and how to use them; and generally provided what he viewed as encouragement in his delusion that he should carry out a massacre." OpenAI, for its part, denied its chatbot was responsible for the shooting. "Last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," a spokesperson said in the wake of the lawsuit. "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity," the rep added. "ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise." News of the lawsuit comes just weeks after Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier opened a criminal probe into whether ChatGPT's advice to Ikner helped fuel the violence after disturbing chat logs between ChatGPT and the alleged gunman surfaced. "Florida is leading the way in cracking down on AI's use in criminal behavior, and if ChatGPT were a person, it would be facing charges for murder," Uthmeier said. "This criminal investigation will determine whether OpenAI bears criminal responsibility for ChatGPT's actions in the shooting at Florida State University last year."

Family of Florida mass shooting victim sues OpenAI in US court

May 11 (Reuters) - The family of a man killed in a 2025 mass shooting at Florida State University has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in a U.S. court, claiming the shooter was aided by ChatGPT in planning the attack. The family of Tiru Chabba filed the lawsuit on Sunday in Florida federal court against the company and the man charged in the shooting, Phoenix Ikner. It is at least the second lawsuit filed in the U.S. accusing OpenAI of facilitating a mass shooting. The lawsuit claims ChatGPT served as a co-conspirator in the shooting, because Ikner planned and carried it out using information provided by ChatGPT in conversations in the preceding months. Despite conversations about mass shootings, the lethality of Ikner's weapons and when the FSU student union was busiest, the chatbot did not flag or escalate the conversations, the lawsuit claims. The lawsuit, which seeks compensatory and punitive damages, accuses OpenAI of designing a defective product and failing to warn the public about its risks. "Last year's mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime," OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri said in a statement. "In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity." Pusateri said the company identified an account believed to be associated with the suspect after the shooting and proactively shared it with law enforcement. The company continues to cooperate with law enforcement and is continuously working to improve detection of harmful intent, he said. Ikner, a deputy sheriff's son, killed two people and wounded four others at the school in Tallahassee, Florida, before he was shot by officers and hospitalized, authorities said. He faces two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted first-degree murder, according to court records. A lawyer for Ikner did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced in April that he was launching a criminal investigation into ChatGPT's role in the FSU shooting after prosecutors reviewed the chat logs between Ikner and the program. OpenAI has said it trains its models to refuse requests that could "meaningfully enable violence," and notifies law enforcement when conversations suggest "an imminent and credible risk of harm to others," with mental health experts helping assess borderline cases. AI companies are facing a growing wave of lawsuits accusing them of failing to prevent chatbot interactions that plaintiffs say contribute to self-harm, mental illness and violence. Last month, family members of victims of one of Canada's deadliest mass shootings filed a group of lawsuits against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging the company knew eight months before the attack that the shooter was planning it on ChatGPT but did not warn ?police. (Reporting by Diana Novak Jones; Editing by Nia Williams)