Eight States Bring Parallel Lawsuits Against OpenAI Over Safety Issues

Eight states have sued OpenAI in their respective state courts, alleging the tech giant failed to implement sufficient safeguards to protect vulnerable users, including children and the elderly. The coordinated lawsuits mark an escalation in the battle by state authorities to impose guardrails on artificial intelligence in the absence of federal regulations. At least six states had previously turned to outside law firms to bring lawsuits against technology companies rather than taking direct action. The latest lawsuits were filed Wednesday (Oct. 15) by a bipartisan group of state attorneys general. Seven of the eight — Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, West Virginia, Arkansas, Idaho and Montana — have Republican attorneys general, signaling a break with President Trump’s hands-off regulatory policy on AI. Only Arizona among the group is represented by a Democrat.