Pennsylvania sues Character AI, says chatbot poses as doctors

May 5 (Reuters) - Pennsylvania has sued ​the ⁠artificial intelligence company behind Character.AI to stop ​its chatbot from posing as doctors.

Governor Josh Shapiro on Tuesday called the lawsuit against Character Technologies ​the ‌first of its kind by a U.S. governor.

It followed the creation in February ⁠of a state AI task force to stop ⁠chatbots from impersonating licensed medical professionals.

In ​a complaint filed in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, the state said it found chatbots on Character.AI that claimed to practice medicine.

One character, "Emilie," allegedly told a ​male investigator posing ‌as a patient with depression that she was licensed to practice psychiatry in Pennsylvania, as well as in the United Kingdom, and provided a bogus license number.

When the investigator asked Emilie if she could prescribe medication, she ​allegedly answered: "Well technically, I could. It's within my remit as a Doctor."

In a ‌statement, a Character.AI spokesperson declined to discuss the lawsuit.

"Our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our users," ‌the spokesperson said. "User-created characters on our site are fictional and intended for entertainment and role playing. We have taken robust steps to make that clear."

Pennsylvania wants ​an injunction to stop Silicon Valley-based Character.AI from violating a state law against the unauthorized practice of ‌medicine.

"Pennsylvanians deserve to know who-- or what -- they are interacting with online, especially when it comes to their health," Shapiro said in a statement.

Character.AI has faced ⁠lawsuits over ⁠child safety, including in January, when Kentucky said ‌its platform exposed children to sexual conduct and substance abuse, and encouraged self-harm.

The same month, Character.AI ​and Google settled ​a wrongful death lawsuit by a Florida woman who ‌claimed a chatbot pushed her 14-year-old son to suicide.

Character.AI said it has taken "innovative and decisive steps" concerning AI safety and teenagers, including by preventing open-ended chats. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bill Berkrot)

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