It is probably not true that ChatGPT has resulted in an increase in murders and suicides, and certainly it would be very difficult to prove liability on OpenAI for this. It reminds me of the campaign in the 90s against video game manufacturers for "corrupting the youth".

But I also don't think they expect to win. They just want to show that they're doing something to fight tech companies and AI.

If so, would this program also open me up to liability in Florida?

  const platitudes = ['Good point!', 'You're absolutely right.', 'I agree, let's explore this idea further.', 'This plan is a good idea'];

  var prompt;
  var response = "Hello, AI here, how can I help you?";
  while (true) {
    prompt = window.prompt(response);
    response = platitudes[Math.floor(Math.random() * platitudes.length)];
  }

If it goes anywhere at all, it'll likely just result in a settlement paid to the government and a consent decree mandating well-intended, nice-sounding yet vague rules which just become another compliance cost for leaders, barrier for emerging competitors and otherwise accomplish little of value for citizens. It's also unproductive because it tends to polarize a complex, nuanced and evolving technical issue toward extremes by hijacking it as fodder for existing political and even culture war battles.

Would this lawsuit even be a thing?

That and DeSantis is probably still eyeing a presidential run in 2028 and this will win him some points with his base. This lawsuit is absurd.

Of course it should steer people away from harmful thoughts like any sensible human would, but that's all you can do, really.

Texas is leaning into becoming the manufacturing and R&D hub for the US, and is courting gigascale data centers and rolling out nuclear power, near-infinite solar, wind, and gas to power it as fast as possible.

Florida is leaning into the retired and populist factions of the GOP, banning data centers and taking on populist anti-tech positions that Texas wouldn't dare (because they want the investment).

Can't wait for them to sue the NRA next!

  aiding and abetting violence: books on the topic since the 5th century BCE
  economic disruption: like the printing press
  copyright theft: printing tech also makes that far easier
  displaces creativity: this was Socrates' objection to reading and writing
  misinformation: both techs turbocharge all info, correct or not
  environmental impact: e.g. deforestation
  amplifies bias: this is a common purpose of writing things down  
  atrophy of skills: Socrates said reading would damage memory skills
  concentration of power: writing was tightly controlled by powerful interests for their leverage and protection

I don't see the state's involvement in that

Reverend Doctor Robert Evans had a few episodes on Behind the Bastards this last month about how AI chatbots seem to sometimes create cult-like dynamics with their users. I don't know how this argument will fare in court, but I don't know if this is necessarily wrong.

Either kids aren't actually being harmed, government regulation will cause more harm, or parents should parent their kids. Either way, nothing about the solution should involve me.