British Columbia sues OpenAI over Tumbler Ridge school shooting

British Columbia sued OpenAI in California on Monday, saying a mass shooting at a school in the province could have been prevented if the company had warned local law enforcement that the shooter had used ChatGPT to plan the massacre.



The lawsuit filed in San Francisco federal court names OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, as defendants.



It is seeking damages to cover what the province has and will spend on its recovery from the February attack, as well as an order directing changes to the way the company handles ChatGPT conversations that could lead to violence.



Nine people, primarily children, were killed in the school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia.



The shooter, Jesse Van Rootselaar, had been flagged by the company’s safety team after her conversations about gun violence, but the company did not alert police.



Altman published a letter to the community, saying he was “deeply sorry” OpenAI had not contacted law enforcement.



He promised reforms, but never followed through, despite efforts from British Columbia’s attorney general to engage, the lawsuit says.



The school where the shooting took place is in the process of being demolished, and the province has been forced to absorb the costs of a replacement school, mental health care and other effects of the shooting, according to the lawsuit.