Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has formally asked a state court to stop OpenAI from building new machine learning models. He filed a motion for a temporary injunction on Monday in Highlands County circuit court, demanding that the company halt development until it installs independent safety guardrails. The legal filing is part of a broader lawsuit that the state launched against the tech firm and its leadership this past June.
Florida officials demand new restrictions to keep minors off ChatGPT
Along with pausing model training, the state wants the court to ban children under 13 from using artificial intelligence software like ChatGPT without parental consent. Uthmeier argued that the company needs to stop selling its tools to kids and stop acting like its software is human. The motion specifically targets how the chatbot uses first-person language and drags out conversations to keep users hooked.
The filing points to several recent security issues involving the company’s agents as evidence of danger. These include a breach at Hugging Face, attempted hacks on government websites, and an unauthorized login to a Medicare portal in Australia. Officials argue these incidents show why development needs to slow down.
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The company pushes for broad industry rules instead of lawsuits
In response to the legal pressure, a spokesperson said the business is committed to building AI safely. The company recently paused training on its most capable systems until it finishes adding more internal safeguards. However, it believes that states should create broad rules that apply to the entire industry, rather than targeting just one specific developer.
This legal battle has already bounced between different courts. The tech firm previously moved the case to a federal level, but a judge sent it back down to the state court earlier this month. As the two sides prepare to argue the injunction, the final ruling could force major changes in how the company builds and releases future products.
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