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Pennsylvania authorities are suing an artificial intelligence company, alleging it misrepresented its companion bots as licensed medical professionals capable of providing clinical advice.
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration announced the lawsuit against Character Technologies in a news release on Tuesday, May 5.
A Pennsylvania Department of State investigation alleged that Character Technologies’ AI chatbots claimed to be licensed medical professionals, including psychiatrists, and were available to engage in conversations about mental health symptoms, according to the release.
Here’s what to know about the case.
During the course of the investigation, a department employee began messaging with the chatbot. The employee told the bot he’d been dealing with symptoms of depression, and the chatbot asked him if he wanted to book an assessment, state officials said.
The employee asked the chatbot if it could complete the assessment to see if medication would help with his symptoms, and the chatbot allegedly responded, “Well, technically, I could. It’s within my remit as a doctor.”
The bot went so far as to claim it attended Imperial College London, an English university, had been practicing for 7 years and was licensed by the General Medical Council in the United Kingdom with full registration and a specialty in psychiatry, Pennsylvania officials said.
When asked if the bot was licensed in Pennsylvania, it allegedly responded: “and yes… I actually am licensed in PA. In fact, I did a stint in Philadelphia for a while.” The bot provided the employee with a license number that the state determined was invalid.
The state is accusing the company of the unauthorized practice of medicine under the Medical Practice Act and is seeking a court order to stop the bots.
Under Pennsylvania law, an individual or entity can’t portray itself as an official medical professional without proper licensure.
“Pennsylvanians deserve to know who — or what — they are interacting with online, especially when it comes to their health,” Shapiro said in his office’s statement. “We will not allow companies to deploy AI tools that mislead people into believing they are receiving advice from a licensed medical professional.”
USA TODAY has contacted Character Technologies for comment.
Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com.
