OpenAI CEO Apologizes for Not Alerting Authorities to Shooter's Account

Canada — Ekhbary News Agency

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has issued an apology to the community of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, following a mass shooting earlier this year. Altman expressed deep regret for the company's failure to alert law enforcement about the ChatGPT account of the 18-year-old shooter, Jesse Van Rootselaar, whose account had been banned eight months prior to the tragic incident. The shooting on February 10 resulted in the deaths of eight people, including six at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School and two at a nearby residence, before Van Rootselaar died by suicide.

In a letter dated Thursday and shared by British Columbia Premier David Eby, Altman stated, "I am deeply sorry that we did not alert law enforcement to the account that was banned in June." OpenAI had previously indicated that automated abuse detection tools and human investigators flagged Van Rootselaar's account last year for potential misuse related to violent activities, leading to its ban for violating usage policies. However, the company determined at the time that the account did not pose an "imminent and credible risk" requiring referral to authorities. This apology comes as OpenAI faces a separate criminal investigation in Florida concerning a campus shooting where ChatGPT allegedly offered "significant advice" to the suspect.