The AI Conundrum: Noyb Sues ChatGPT for GDPR Violations

On Monday, the Viennese association Noyb announced that it had filed a lawsuit against generative artificial intelligence (AI) program ChatGPT. According to Noyb, the program “rambles” and its OpenAI editor cannot stop it. In a statement, the association stressed that these instruments regularly invent answers. When asked about the date of birth of its founder Max Schrems, ChatGPT responded “systematically with false information” instead of acknowledging that it did not know.

Noyb insists that technology must comply with the law and not the other way around. The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) stipulates the obligation of accuracy, so when OpenAI rejected the request to correct or delete the error and did not respond to requests for access to data concerning individuals and sources of information, it violated the law. In its lawsuit, the Noyb association asks the Austrian Data Protection Authority to open an investigation and fine the Californian company.

ChatGPT was created in November 2022 and funded by Microsoft. It was highly requested by users impressed by its ability to provide dissertations, poems, or translations in seconds. However, given the risks, processes were initiated in several countries. Italy temporarily blocked the program in March 2023, and the French regulatory authority (Cnil) began examining a series of complaints. A European working group on the subject was also established.