OpenAI is under criminal investigation.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on April 22nd that he is opening a criminal investigation into OpenAI and ChatGPT, based on messages exchanged between the chatbot and Phoenix Ikner, the suspect in the April 2025 Florida State University shooting. This marks the first time a U.S. prosecutor has initiated a criminal investigation into an AI company in connection with a homicide.

The shooting occurred near student housing at Florida State University, a public university with more than 43,000 students in Tallahassee. The incident left two people dead and six injured. Ikner, then 20 years old and a student at the university, is currently being held awaiting trial on multiple charges of murder and attempted murder.

Prosecutors obtained Ikner's queries to ChatGPT. According to documents obtained by the New York Times , on the day of the shooting, Ikner asked the chatbot about the nation's reaction to a shooting and what time of day would be the busiest at the fraternity. Uthmeier said the messages also showed Ikner asking about the power of the gun at close range and the appropriate type of ammunition.

"My prosecutors have reviewed this case and they said that if it was someone on the other end of the line, we would charge them with murder," Uthmeier said at a press conference.

OpenAI denied responsibility in an official statement. "The mass shooting at Florida State University last year was a tragedy, but we are not responsible for this horrific crime. ChatGPT provided accurate answers to questions with information widely available on the internet and did not encourage or promote illegal activity," OpenAI stated.

Uthmeier acknowledged that pursuing criminal liability against an AI company is an unprecedented legal issue. However, he stated that the prosecutor's office has the task of considering whether individuals involved in designing, managing, and operating the chatbot could be held criminally liable. The office plans to summon OpenAI to provide internal records, including policies and training materials related to handling situations where users report harmful behavior.

The criminal investigation is running concurrently with the civil investigation into OpenAI's legal liability. The state of Florida is also preparing for a special legislative session next week, in which Governor Ron DeSantis will call for the establishment of new legal limits on the use of AI.