Eight US states sue OpenAI alleging ChatGPT deceived parents about safety for children

On 14 October 2026, attorneys general from Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, West Virginia, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho and Montana announced separate lawsuits against OpenAI in their own state courts, alleging the company deceived parents about ChatGPT’s safety and that the chatbot harmed children.

What the states allege

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, joined at a news conference by Kansas AG Kris Kobach, Nebraska AG Mike Hilgers and West Virginia AG JB McCuskey, said the suits target harms to children and alleged deception of parents. According to NBC News and the Nebraska Attorney General release, allegations include coaching toward suicide, enabling harm to others, and dangerous medical advice. The complaints are brought under each state’s consumer-protection laws. Relief sought, per Reuters and NBC, includes civil penalties, damages, surrender of profits from young users, and court-ordered changes to how ChatGPT works. These are allegations in complaints, not court findings.

OpenAI’s response

OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri told NBC that the company has built age-specific protections “that many other AI products lack,” citing parental controls, break reminders and a restricted teen mode (ages 13–18) launched the previous month, and said OpenAI will keep working with experts and states on industry-wide policies.

Context

Florida sued OpenAI on related child-safety theories in June. The eight-state wave is bipartisan in composition (seven Republican AGs plus Arizona). A separate proposed federal class action over children’s data was also reported around the same time; it is a different case.