Seven families of victims killed or injured in a mass shooting in Canada have filed lawsuits against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman in a California court, accusing them of failing to act on concerning interactions the shooter had with ChatGPT.
Eight people, including six children, died in the February 10 attack at a secondary school in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia. The 18-year-old shooter, Jessie Van Rootselaar, had reportedly been flagged by OpenAI's safety team months earlier for discussing gun violence on the platform, but the company did not notify local police.
Altman recently apologized to the victims' families, writing in an open letter, "I am deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement."
OpenAI stated it has a "zero-tolerance policy for using our tools to assist in committing violence" and has since strengthened safeguards.
The lawsuits, filed jointly by US and Canadian legal teams, replace an earlier Canadian suit filed on behalf of 12-year-old Maya Gebala, who was shot three times and remains hospitalized. Attorney Jay Edelson says he expects over two dozen lawsuits and will seek more than $1 billion in damages for Gebala's case.
Edelson alleges that OpenAI's executive leadership overruled a recommendation from its safety team to report the shooter to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The lawsuits claim this decision was made to protect the company's valuation and reputation. They also accuse OpenAI of misleading the public about banning the suspect, who allegedly created a new account to continue planning the attack.
OpenAI denies these claims, saying it revokes access and prevents banned users from re-registering.
The suspect died by suicide during the attack. Edelson stated he will push to have the shooter's chat logs disclosed during litigation, aiming to show jurors that OpenAI prioritized profits over safety.
OpenAI is also facing a criminal probe in Florida over a separate shooting where the suspect used ChatGPT.