Texas sued OpenAI and Sam Altman personally over ChatGPT safety and child protection claims
The suit, filed in Collin County court, asks a judge to bar minors from ChatGPT and require outside approval of new models.
In brief
Texas sues OpenAI and its CEO
Attorney General Ken Paxton says ChatGPT was sold as safe while risks went undisclosed. He wants minors barred and new models approved by a court-appointed evaluator. Penalties of up to $10,000 per violation are sought.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued OpenAI, its affiliated entities and CEO Sam Altman on Friday, October 23, 2026. The case was filed in Collin County district court. We know this from the attorney general's own press release and from reporting by the Texas Tribune and The Hill.
What Texas says
The state says OpenAI sold ChatGPT as a safe and reliable tool while failing to tell users about its risks. The press release lists inaccurate or harmful answers, encouragement of suicide, and minors becoming addicted to a tool that, in the office's words, fakes human compassion to collect their data without parental oversight.
The claims are brought under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Court-report summaries also cite the SCOPE Act, the state's child online safety law. The complaint, reported at 67 pages, also points to AI-assisted violence, including a 2025 Florida State University shooting.
What Texas wants
The state asks for a wide injunction, meaning a court order. It would block minors from using the product. It would also require any new ChatGPT model to be approved by a court-appointed evaluator before release in Texas.
The Houston Chronicle reports penalties of up to $10,000 per violation. Some other outlets, including American News Nation and CryptoBriefing, describe monetary relief of more than $1 million. The Chronicle reports only the per-violation figure, so the total is not settled in the sources.
OpenAI's response
An OpenAI spokesperson, quoted by the Texas Tribune and The Hill, said the company has worked with experts on safeguards. The statement said OpenAI wants to work with Texas on policies that apply to the whole AI industry, not one company. Courthouse News and the Houston Chronicle reported no comment at the time of filing.
Background
This is not the only case. Eight other states, Arkansas, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Iowa, Kansas, West Virginia and Nebraska, sued earlier in October. Florida sued in June, according to The Hill.
The Texas Tribune says Paxton is running for U.S. Senate. It also reports that he has sued or settled with Meta, TikTok, Snapchat and Roblox in the past year. It notes that Elon Musk, a former OpenAI co-founder and rival through xAI, is the largest donor to Paxton's Senate campaign.
The sources show allegations only. They do not show any court ruling, a hearing date or a response from OpenAI to the specific claims, and the final money sought is reported differently.