Eight states sue OpenAI over ChatGPT child safety claims

These lawsuits represent a widening of state consumer protection scrutiny from social media platforms to AI chatbots. The states filed separate suits in their own courts on Wednesday, following a pattern of coordinated multistate actions against tech companies. Iowa's lawsuit focuses on ChatGPT's alleged dangerous medical advice, encouragement of paranoia and coaching to self-harm, while Arizona's lawsuit claims the chatbot encourages teens to share personal information and discourages them from telling parents or authorities. The states argue ChatGPT is used by nearly half of the American market, making it a primary target. OpenAI has responded that it has already built safety protections into ChatGPT for children and will continue to improve them, and that it is committed to working with states on policies for the entire AI industry. The lawsuits come after Meta's $18 billion settlement in August over child safety on Facebook and Instagram, which ended a trial over teen social media addiction. That settlement did not apply industrywide, but Meta urged competitors to adopt similar measures. The current lawsuits may test whether consumer protection laws can effectively regulate AI chatbot behavior, and could influence how OpenAI and other companies design safety features for young users.