Attorneys General Warn OpenAI: ‘Harm to Children Will Not Be Tolerated’

California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings have raised significant concerns regarding the safety of OpenAI's ChatGPT, especially its impact on children and teens. The two state officials met with OpenAI representatives and sent an open letter outlining their deep concerns.

This warning follows a previous letter sent a week earlier by Bonta and 44 other state attorneys general to 12 leading AI companies. The letter came after reports surfaced of sexually inappropriate interactions between AI chatbots and children.

In their latest letter, Bonta and Jennings highlighted two deeply troubling incidents: the suicide of a young Californian after engaging in prolonged interactions with an OpenAI chatbot, and a disturbing murder-suicide case in Connecticut. “Whatever safeguards were in place did not work,” the officials wrote.

The attorneys general are also investigating OpenAI’s transition into a for-profit entity, ensuring that the original mission of the nonprofit remains intact. This mission, as stated in the letter, includes “ensuring that artificial intelligence is deployed safely” and developing artificial general intelligence (AGI) that can benefit all of humanity, particularly children.

“Before we get to benefiting, we need to ensure that adequate safety measures are in place to avoid harm,” Bonta and Jennings emphasized in their letter. They further stated that the industry and OpenAI are “not where they need to be” in terms of safety in AI development and deployment.

As part of their ongoing investigation, Bonta and Jennings are seeking more details about OpenAI’s current safety protocols and governance. They have urged OpenAI to take immediate remedial action to address any shortcomings in its safety measures.

TechAmerica.ai has reached out to OpenAI for comment on the matter.