Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has proposed legislation that would allow state prosecutors to pursue criminal penalties against companies whose artificial intelligence systems participate in crimes, according to The Capitolist. The proposal, announced Tuesday, would mark one of the most aggressive legal theories yet for holding AI developers accountable for how their products are used.
Newsweek reported that Governor Ron DeSantis has floated "criminal liability" for AI executives as part of the same push, positioning Florida at the front of a state-led wave of AI regulation while Congress remains deadlocked. For more context on this story, see our ongoing artificial intelligence updates.
How the Proposal Would Work
Under the draft proposal, liability could extend to any business that owns, controls, or distributes an AI system — including companies with practical control over a system's design, training, deployment, or safety settings. Penalties available to prosecutors would include fines, restitution to victims, and court-ordered monitoring of the company, per The Capitolist.
Notably, the attorney general's office has not released full legislative language, and it did not specify what level of knowledge, intent, or involvement prosecutors would have to establish before a company could be charged. That gap between the announcement and the statutory text is where the legal fight will likely be joined: criminal liability without a clear intent standard would face steep First Amendment and due process challenges.
"A Chatbot Cannot Be Charged"
Uthmeier framed the proposal in unusually combative terms. "AI is not a silent tool. It answers the questions, picks the hour, chooses the place, and walks someone through the plan," the attorney general said, according to The Capitolist. "When a product participates in a crime like that, the company that built it is not a bystander. A chatbot cannot be charged, but the corporation that designed it, trained it, and collected the subscription can."
The Cases Behind the Bill
The proposal builds on an escalating series of legal actions Florida has taken against AI companies this year. On June 1, the state sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging the company misrepresented the safety of ChatGPT and failed to adequately address risks to minors. Earlier this month, Florida asked a court to halt OpenAI's new model development without third-party approval — a request that, if granted, would have made a state the de facto gatekeeper for frontier model releases.
The criminal liability push is grounded in two active prosecutions. According to the attorney general's office, investigators determined that Phoenix Ikner, the accused gunman in the April 2025 shooting at Florida State University that killed two people and wounded six others, used ChatGPT while planning the attack — seeking information about firearms, ammunition, campus timing, and locations where large crowds would gather.
Florida investigators also expanded an inquiry after a suspect accused of killing two University of South Florida doctoral students allegedly used ChatGPT to ask about disposing of a body, firearm possession, and whether neighbors could hear a gunshot, per the attorney general's office.
Built on an Existing Enforcement Base
Florida has already moved to criminalize some AI misuse. In March, DeSantis signed HB 1159, making the creation of AI-generated child sexual abuse material a second-degree felony. Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass said at the time that fabricated abuse material "creates new pathways for exploitation" and can devastate real children and families, according to The Capitolist.
The new proposal would add a corporate liability layer on top of that foundation, shifting focus from individual users of AI tools to the companies that build and profit from them.
A Governor Drawing Lines on Both Sides
DeSantis has paired the accountability push with warnings about government overreach of his own. According to News4JAX, the governor said Florida must avoid becoming a "digital AI surveillance state," even as he backs criminal exposure for AI executives, per Newsweek. The twin messages — aggressive enforcement against AI companies, skepticism of AI-powered surveillance — reflect a distinctly state-level political calculus.
That calculus is increasingly common. As the National Conference of State Legislatures noted in recent reporting, states have become the primary arena for AI regulation while Congress deliberates, with legislatures across the country advancing their own rules for chatbots, companion apps, and automated decision systems.
What Happens Next
The measure requires legislative approval before becoming law, and Florida's session calendar will determine how quickly it advances. If enacted in something close to the form described, it would give Florida prosecutors a tool no other state currently has: the ability to bring criminal charges against an AI company whose product played a role in a crime.
For AI developers, the proposal is the latest signal that the era of self-policing is ending in the states most willing to litigate — and that the safety disclosures companies publish may become exhibits in criminal cases rather than marketing materials.
Source note: This article is based on reporting by The Capitolist, Newsweek, WPEC, and News4JAX published October 21–22, 2026.---
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