State of Florida v OpenAI Inc
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State of Florida v. OpenAI Inc. is a 2026 civil enforcement action filed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman over alleged ChatGPT safety representations and user harms.[4] NBC News reported that Florida is the first state to sue OpenAI and Altman over design and safety, and that the civil action is separate from a criminal investigation Uthmeier opened in late April 2026.[4]
The state filed a temporary-injunction motion on September 28, 2026, in the Highlands County court. The motion describes an earlier federal removal and remand; the state court has not granted the requested injunction in the sources reviewed.[2]
Allegations
The complaint alleges that OpenAI misrepresented ChatGPT's safety while pursuing market value and growth.[4] NBC News reported that the lawsuit claims OpenAI's systems present risks of addiction, cognitive decline, suicide, violence, and related harms to users.[4] The complaint seeks penalties and a court order and asks to hold Altman personally liable for alleged harm to Floridians.[4]
Procedural Status
NBC News reported that the lawsuit was filed on June 1, 2026 and that OpenAI did not immediately respond to its request for comment.[4] NBC News also reported that OpenAI has said it designs its systems with safety safeguards and continues improving ChatGPT's ability to recognize and respond to emotional-distress signals.[4]
September 28 temporary-injunction motion
Florida's attorney general asked the Highlands County court for temporary restrictions while the lawsuit proceeds. Its motion requests independent third-party guardrails and approval for developing AI models, limits on offering ChatGPT to Florida minors and on handling children's data, and restrictions on safety representations, human-like presentation and prompts intended to prolong conversations. These are the state's requested terms, not an order in effect.[2]
The filing cites alleged model-safety incidents, child-safety concerns and claimed violations of Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and public-nuisance law. The court has not determined whether the allegations warrant temporary relief. The motion is dated September 28, 2026, and bears state-court filing number 257955836.[2]
Related: September 28 news coverage.
Significance
The case is significant for AI law because it frames chatbot-safety allegations through state consumer-protection, negligence, product-liability, fraudulent-misrepresentation, and public-nuisance theories.[4] The case also adds a civil enforcement action to Florida's earlier criminal investigation into OpenAI.[4]
See Also
- September 28, 2026 news coverage of the temporary-injunction request
- June 1, 2026 AI Law Digest
- Florida AG Criminal Investigation OpenAI 2026
- Cases
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Court filing / case record, reviewed September 7, 2026
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 State of Florida v. OpenAI, plaintiff’s motion for temporary injunction, Filing 257955836, e-filed September 28, 2026, pp. 1–2, 35–38; court-stamped copy via CBS12.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Florida Attorney General v. Altman et al., No. 2:26-cv-14238, S.D. Fla., docket entries 1 and 2, July 2, 2026 (public docket snapshot through August 24, 2026).
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 NBC News, "Florida sues OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, accusing them of putting profit over safety" (June 1, 2026).