ChatGPT Creator Sued for Theft of Private Data in ‘AI Arms Race’

ChatGPT creator OpenAI Inc. is stealing “vast amounts” of personal information to train its artificial intelligence models in a heedless hunt for profits, a group of anonymous individuals claimed in a lawsuit seeking class action status.

OpenAI has violated privacy laws by secretly scraping 300 billion words from the internet, tapping “books, articles, websites and posts — including personal information obtained without consent,” according to the sprawling, 157-page lawsuit. It doesn’t shy from sweeping language, accusing the company of risking “civilizational collapse.”

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testifies before Congress in Washington on May 16.

Photographer: Eric Lee/Bloomberg

The plaintiffs are described by their occupations or interests but identified only by initials for fear ...