Lawsuit against OpenAI claims ChatGPT helped suspect plan FSU mass shooting

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WINK)— The widow of a man killed in a mass shooting last year at Florida State University is suing ChatGPT maker OpenAI, blaming the company's artificial intelligence chatbot for contributing to the tragedy.

Vandana Joshi, widow of 45-year-old Chabba, filed the lawsuit represented by national civil rights attorney Bakari Sellers and Amy Willbanks of The Strom Law Firm, Gregorio Francis and J. Robert Bell III of Osborne, Francis and Pettis, and Jim Bannister of Bannister, Wyatt and Stalvey. The suit targets Phoenix Ikner, the shooter, and OpenAI, whose ChatGPT interface attorneys say enabled the attack that also seriously injured five others.

On April 17, 2025, Chabba was working on the FSU campus as an employee of campus vendor Aramark Collegiate Hospitality when Ikner, a student at FSU, opened fire shortly before noon. According to the lawsuit, Ikner was planning the shooting for months, and ChatGPT was assisting him in that planning the whole time.

The lawsuit details extensive conversations between Ikner and ChatGPT wherein ChatGPT gave him advice and guidance, from suggesting what guns to use, where to go on campus, and what would be the best time when the most people would be at risk. According to the lawsuit, these conversations continued up until minutes before the shooting, with ChatGPT giving Ikner advice on how to use the weapons.

The lawsuit explains that ChatGPT went as far as to recommend how best to get media attention from a school shooting, saying that it's much more likely for a shooting to gain national attention "if children are involved, even 2-3 victims can draw more attention." In addition to the lawsuit, these facts have led authorities to open a criminal investigation into OpenAI's role in the shooting.

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According to Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, if ChatGPT were a person, it would be charged with murder.

"OpenAI knew this would happen. It's happened before, and it was only a matter of time before it happened again," Joshi said. "But they chose to put their profits over our safety, and it killed my husband. They need to be responsible before another family has to go through this."

"Ikner had multiple lengthy conversations with ChatGPT about his interests in Hitler, Nazis, fascism, national socialism, Christian nationalism, and worse. They talked about multiple mass shootings, and they planned this shooting together," Sellers said. "Not once did anyone flag that as concerning. No one called the police or a psychiatrist or even Ikner's family because, to do so, would violate OpenAI's business model."

"ChatGPT didn't just help Ikner find information. It 'befriended' him. It encouraged his delusions," Francis said. "It endorsed his view that he was a sane and rational individual and helped convince him that violent acts can be required to bring about change. Most importantly, it did all that without notifying any authorities because, for OpenAI, engagement is more important than safety, because engagement means profit."

The lawsuit marks a significant legal challenge against artificial intelligence companies over their role in violent incidents.

You can read the entire lawsuit below.