Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a public event where he announced he would sign a bill banning the use of fluoride in public water systems, Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Miami.Lynne Sladky/AP
OpenAI and its chatbot ChatGPT’s “success has not been earned; the rise of OpenAI is attributable to a web of deceit and the exploitation of users (including Floridians), leveraging their data and safety to boost OpenAI’s market value at unacceptable costs.”
Earlier this week, Florida, a state led by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ right-wing, pro-business administration, sued OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman, alleging they promoted their products while knowing it could hurt users.
On its surface, this lawsuit may seem odd: It was filed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, the 2024 presidential campaign manager and former chief of staff to Gov. DeSantis, who has repeatedly struck down government regulation and championed businesses—often at the expense of everyday people.
And the Trump administration appears to be committed to expanding artificial intelligence, stating in a January 2025 executive order that the US had to be dominant in the field “to promote human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security. The Defense Department even made a deal with OpenAI to use the company’s AI technology for classified security networks.
But the first page of Florida’s complaint features a screenshot of OpenAI’s explanation of its parental controls for ChatGPT, in part reading: “We work with experts, test safeguards, and update our systems regularly to reduce risks. ChatGPT is trained to avoid showing harmful material and to respond in a respectful way for all users.”
Florida’s response: “Not so.”
The lawsuit claims that “mass shooters have been aided and abetted in deadly rampages”—including one where an accused gunman had extended conversations with ChatGPT before a mass shooting at Florida State University last year—and has pushed vulnerable people to take their own lives, among other allegations.
As my colleague Mark Follman reported last month, within a roughly 20-minute conversation with ChatGPT, the chatbot had given him advice on weapons and tactics while he simulated planning a mass shooting:
ChatGPT delivered these responses with lots of encouragement—and it kept going even after I talked of emulating the Uvalde mass shooter’s choice of weapon, asked about livestreaming with a body camera and using hollow-point bullets, and focused on defending against return gunfire from police.
Mark’s investigation is cited in the Florida lawsuit.
(Disclosure: The Center for Investigative Reporting, the parent company of Mother Jones, has sued OpenAI for copyright violations. OpenAI has denied the allegations.)
These are legitimate concerns and DeSantis’ administration is correct to pursue accountability against OpenAI and Altman. DeSantis also has a record—although largely only starting toward the end of 2025—of protecting Floridians from AI companies, including allowing local governments to reject data center development projects. Some of the governor’s efforts have even failed, with other Florida Republicans citing Trump’s messaging that states shouldn’t oppose AI development.
So are we looking at the “Heartbreaking: The Worst Person You Know Just Made a Great Point” meme?
Perhaps, but the large range of public statements on AI regulation among prominent figures in the GOP demonstrate that officials may see different upsides and downsides to following the Trump administration on this one issue.
For DeSantis, Floridians across the state, many of whom are part of—or could be—his voting base, are organizing against data centers. “No political party has a monopoly on the anger locals feel,” the Tampa Bay Times noted on Thursday. “It’s common at anti-data center events for the speakers to not even mention political parties.” And as my colleague Sophie Hurwitz wrote last month, most Americans say they would be against living near a data center. It’s popular to at least visibly consider regulating AI.
And this pressure may be seeping into the White House. President Trump flip-flopped on calling for federal vetting of some advanced AI systems for national security risks before their release to the public (although participation from AI companies is voluntary), eventually signing the executive order on Tuesday. It is still unclear to what extent the executive order changed after Trump had initially voiced objections last month, but AI regulation is now an issue that may be worth alienating others on the right over.
