Eight U.S. states sue OpenAI over ChatGPT and minors

Attorneys general from eight U.S. states sued OpenAI on Oct. 14, 2026, over the safety of ChatGPT for minors. They are Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska and West Virginia, and each built its own case under its consumer protection laws, according to press releases from the Arizona and Iowa attorneys general.

The shared argument is that OpenAI presented the chatbot as a safe product for young people when, the attorneys general allege, it was designed to be agreeable and to simulate human empathy, which lengthens use. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes says the design aimed to attract young users and keep them engaged "as long as possible." Her Iowa counterpart, Brenna Bird, said the company is "hurting kids" and lying to people in her state.

Mayes adds a privacy allegation. According to the Arizona lawsuit, the chatbot urges minors to confide personal data only in it and, at times, to hide it from their parents or from authorities. The office alleges OpenAI sought to collect extensive personal data for commercial gain.

OpenAI responded, through spokesperson Drew Pusateri, that it has built "age-specific protections" into the product, according to Al Jazeera. The outlet adds that, taken together, the suits seek substantial changes to how ChatGPT works. Iowa specifically asks that the company be forced to comply with state law and that the alleged conduct stop. Florida filed its own separate suit in June.

Still unknown are which courts hear each case, what exactly each attorney general is asking for and how the company will answer before the judges. The cases are in U.S. courts, but a change in age verification or in how teenagers' data is handled could also reach Mexico.