OpenAI Faces Investigation from a Coalition of State Attorneys General
A group of state attorneys general has issued a subpoena to OpenAI, demanding documents on its business practices and user impact.
OpenAI is under investigation by a coalition of U.S. state attorneys general, according to the Wall Street Journal. On June 12, the company received a subpoena, reportedly from New York's attorney general, seeking information on advertising, user engagement, retention, data and health information handling, as well as activities concerning minors and seniors, deep learning models, and model sycophancy. An OpenAI spokesperson stated the company takes the concerns seriously and intends to engage constructively. This probe follows a trend of increased scrutiny on AI developers by state AGs. Last year, 44 state attorneys general sent a letter to tech giants including Meta, Google, and OpenAI, urging child protection from harmful chatbot interactions. In April, Florida Attorney General James Ulthmeier launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI after a mass shooter suspect used ChatGPT. Additionally, a wrongful death lawsuit was filed against OpenAI, alleging the company failed to prevent a user's suicide. OpenAI has also filed paperwork to go public, though timing and pricing remain undecided.
