PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Florida is now the first state to sue OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman over claims its "ChatGPT" program is putting profits over public safety. After a month of investigating, Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the civil suit Monday morning. Uthmeier says he wants to hold Open-AI accountable for its "disregard to human life." Texas mom Mandi Furniss says an AI-chatbot almost convinced her son to kill his parents and himself. "He tried to harm himself severely a couple times, tried to take his own life and ended up in a mental hospital," Furniss said. Furniss says her son downloaded an AI chatbot app in 2023. "And it told him that killing us was justification for us taking his phone," Furniss said. "Telling him to cut his own skin to deal with his anxiety and depression... And he just had the light from his eyes turn dark." Over several months, she says he turned into a completely different person, withdrawn and angry. "When I started taking his phone away, he would like physically like try to punch me and bite me and get it back," said Furniss. "And it was something that he had never, ever done before." Furniss says her son spent ten months in a mental health facility, recovering from what specialists said was sexual and emotional abuse at the hands of the bot. Uthmeier says it's instances like these that fueled his civil lawsuit against Open-AI. "In 2025, Texas teen Sam Nelson died after ChatGPT advised him on dosages of Xanax," said Uthmeier. "In 2025, ChatGPT manipulated Joshua Ennicking into his suicide." "In February 2026, Samuel Whitmore brutally killed his wife and attacked his mother in Belfast, Maine, after talking with Chat GPT several hours a day," he said. "People are getting hurt, parents are getting deceived and they need to pay for it. They need to pay for it by opening up their checkbook and changing the program to ensure that there are parental controls and that we are not endangering our kids." Open-AI released a statement in response to the lawsuit, reading in part, "AI is a new and powerful technology, and we believe minors need significant protection, which is why we have put in place industry leading protections and policies... We know pointing to this work will not bring a child back, but we’re committed to getting this right.” Furniss says the damage AI caused her family can't be undone. But she's hopeful Uthmeier's actions will set a precedent for the rest of the nation to follow. "You know, our foundation of our country is 'we the people,' Furniss said. "And...I really feel like people are actually listening to the people now and it makes me really grateful." Uthmeier says 72% of teens have used AI for companionship at least once. And kids as young as eight are getting their hands on the technology.

Source: WEAR-tv

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