Radio host sues OpenAI for defamation over ChatGPT's 'hallucinations'

OpenAI, the company behind the AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT, has been sued by Armed American Radio's founder and syndicated host, Mark Walters, over the chatbot's "hallucinations".

Walters has filed a defamation lawsuit, claiming that ChatGPT fabricated false legal allegations against him.

This lawsuit is believed to be the first of its kind involving ChatGPT since its introduction in November 2022.

The defamation complaint was filed in Georgia's Superior Court of Gwinnett County.

According to the lawsuit, journalist Fred Riehl requested ChatGPT to provide a summary of a case known as Second Amendment Foundation v. Ferguson, which revolved around accusations against Washington's Attorney General, Bob Ferguson. Riehl shared a link to the case, unaware that ChatGPT cannot access URLs. Consequently, he received a completely fabricated narrative. 

In its response, ChatGPT falsely claimed that the case involved a legal complaint filed by Alan Gottlieb, the founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, against Mark Walters. Moreover, the AI chatbot provided an inaccurate case number and stated that Walters had, “misappropriated funds for personal expenses without authorisation or reimbursement, manipulated financial records and bank statements to conceal his activities, and failed to provide accurate and timely financial reports". However, Mark Walters is not mentioned anywhere in the actual Second Amendment Foundation v. Ferguson filing.

Walters argues that each statement made about him in ChatGPT's response is defamatory and malicious. He claims that the accusations of embezzlement are damaging his reputation and subjecting him to public contempt.