Mark Walters sues ChatGPT for embezzlement ‘hallucinations’

technology

To Shannon Saylor

June 7, 2023 | 5:56 PM

According to the lawsuit, OpenAI has been sued for the first time after a ChatGPT “hallucination” led to a bogus embezzlement charge against a Georgia radio host.

Mark Walters, in a lawsuit against the state of Washington by gun advocacy boss Alan Gottlieb, has falsely accused ChatGPT of “scamming and embezzling” funds from the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF). He said he was shocked to learn that he had filed a lawsuit. The complaint was filed in Georgia state court on June 5.

Walters, CEO of CCW Broadcast Media, which hosts two gun-advocacy radio shows, claims he was a victim of AI “hallucinations,” a phenomenon in which bots like ChatGPT generate false events. there is

According to the complaint, ChatGPT was asked on May 4 by Fred Leal, editor-in-chief of gun advocacy media AmmoLand, to help summarize the lawsuit relating to the Second Amendment Foundation v. Robert Ferguson. It says.

The popular chatbot quickly spat out a 30-page hoaxed response implicating Mr. Walters in the case and identifying him as SAF’s financial officer and chief financial officer, according to the complaint.

Walters claimed in court documents that he never worked for SAF and had nothing to do with the lawsuit.

The complaint states that “all factual statements in the summary concerning Walters are false.”

The case actually accused SAF of abusing the power of Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson to shut down gun rights groups.

According to the complaint, Mr. Leal called Mr. Gottlieb to confirm that ChatGPT’s claims were false.

However, ChatGPT allegedly doubled down on its claims after Leal asked to provide the exact passage of the lawsuit that referred to Walters.

“Yes. According to the complaint, this is a passage from the complaint concerning Mr. Walters,” AI wrote.

“Defendant Mark Walters (“Walters”) is an individual residing in the State of Georgia. Walters has been SAF’s chief financial officer and chief financial officer since at least 2012. Mr. Walters has access to SAF’s bank accounts and financial records and is responsible for maintaining those records and providing financial reports to SAF’s Board of Directors. Walters has a fiduciary duty of loyalty and care to SAF and is expected to act with integrity and with SAF’s best interests in mind. Walters, among other things, embezzled and misappropriated SAF funds and assets for his own gain, and manipulated SAF’s financial records and bank statements to conceal his activities. breach of duty and liability; ”

The lawsuit said ChatGPT’s output “tends to damage Mr. Walter’s reputation and expose him to public hatred, contempt and ridicule” and is “malicious.”

He is seeking financial damages, which will be decided in court.

The Times has reached out to lawyers for OpenAI and Walters for comment.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who released ChatGPT rival Bard, warned about the problem of AI-induced hallucinations in an interview with CBS 60 Minutes in April.

He described scenarios in which Google’s own AI programs develop “emergency traits” or learn untrained and unexpected skills.

The “hallucination” phenomenon underscores calls from experts for greater government regulation of emerging technologies.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has called on Congress to introduce guardrails around artificial intelligence, saying it could “cause significant harm to the world” if left unregulated. .

At a Senate subcommittee hearing on privacy, technology, and law last month, Altman said, “If this technology doesn’t work, it could go completely wrong, and we’re going to be very vocal about it. I want to,” he said.

Elon Musk even advocated halting further development of AI models altogether, warning of the system’s “serious risks to society and humanity.”