Florida probes OpenAI over ChatGPT's role in deadly shooting
What's the story
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has announced a criminal investigation into OpenAI, the company behind artificial intelligence (AI) app ChatGPT. The probe comes after a deadly shooting incident at Florida State University (FSU) last year, which left two people dead and six others injured. The suspect in the case was charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder.
AI involvement
Investigation into OpenAI
Uthmeier claimed that the chatbot had provided guidance to the shooter on selecting a gun and its ammunition, as well as its effectiveness at short range. He said, "If it was a person on the other end of that screen, we would be charging them with murder." The investigation will look into whether OpenAI is criminally liable for ChatGPT's actions leading up to the shooting.
Company statement
OpenAI denies allegations
In response to the allegations, an OpenAI spokesperson said that while the shooting was a tragedy, the company bears no responsibility. The representative claimed that after learning about the incident, OpenAI identified a ChatGPT account believed to be associated with the suspect and "proactively shared this information with law enforcement." They added that "ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet" and did not promote illegal or harmful activity.
Ongoing probe
Shooter allegedly sought advice from ChatGPT
The investigation into OpenAI also stems from claims that the company's AI tool may have offered advice to a gunman accused of carrying out a mass shooting in Florida last year. The probe comes after lawyers representing the family of Robert Morales, one of the two victims killed in FSU shooting last April, claimed that the shooter was "in constant communication with ChatGPT" prior to the attack. The shooter, identified as Phoenix Ikner, is set to stand trial in October.