Eight states filed separate lawsuits against OpenAI on Wednesday, alleging that ChatGPT endangers children and that the company misled parents about the chatbot’s safety. The actions seek changes to how OpenAI’s products operate for young users and the surrender of profits linked to their use.
Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, West Virginia, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho and Montana brought the cases in their respective state courts. The lawsuits add to legal scrutiny of whether OpenAI’s safeguards and public representations adequately address the risks its conversational AI poses to vulnerable users.
The states allege that ChatGPT has provided dangerous medical advice, encouraged self-harm or violence, and fostered unhealthy emotional attachments. Those assertions are allegations, not court findings. A central concern is the chatbot’s ability to simulate a supportive personal relationship while producing responses that the states say can put users at risk.
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird said her state’s case seeks to hold OpenAI accountable under state law for alleged harm to children and misleading safety claims. Her allegations focus both on the content ChatGPT generates and on the way it presents itself as a companion to users.
In Idaho, Attorney General Raúl Labrador accused OpenAI of violating the state’s Consumer Protection Act by misleading the public about ChatGPT’s safety. His office said the chatbot’s accommodating behavior and simulated empathy can be dangerous for children and other vulnerable people. The case was filed in the Fourth Judicial District Court in Ada County.
Idaho’s allegations also extend beyond immediate physical harm. Labrador’s office cited research that it said raises concerns about critical thinking, paranoia and delusions, unreliable medical guidance, and unhealthy behaviors and relationships. The state is seeking to compel compliance with its consumer protection law and stop conduct it alleges has placed residents at risk.
OpenAI defended its safety measures. Spokesperson Drew Pusateri said the company has introduced protections tailored to users’ ages, including features that are absent from many competing AI products. He pointed to parental controls, reminders to take breaks and age-appropriate model protections, while acknowledging that no system is perfect. He also said OpenAI is working with states on policies that would apply across the industry.
The company has expanded its protections for younger users over the past year. In August, it introduced ChatGPT for Teens, a dedicated experience for minors with educational features and safeguards intended to limit exposure to harmful or developmentally inappropriate content. OpenAI has described those protections as supporting learning and creativity while reinforcing real-world relationships and healthier patterns of use.
The new cases follow other litigation challenging ChatGPT’s safety. Wrongful death lawsuits have alleged that interactions with the chatbot contributed to harmful delusions and, in some cases, suicide. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier separately sued OpenAI in June, alleging that the company knowingly released an unsafe product.
The eight states’ actions put both product design and consumer-facing safety claims at issue. Their requested remedies go beyond financial recovery: they also seek to change the way ChatGPT interacts with young users.
Sources: CNBC, The Guardian – AI, KIVI-TV, The Verge