ChatGPT creator denies sister’s childhood rape claim

ChatGPT creator Sam Altman’s sister, Ann Altman, has filed a lawsuit alleging that he regularly sexually abused her between 1997 and 2006.

The lawsuit, which was filed on 6 January in a US District Court in the Eastern District of Missouri, alleges that the abuse started when she was three and Mr Altman was 12.

Mr Altman, who is the chief executive of OpenAI, the firm behind artificial intelligence (AI) software ChatGPT, denied the claims in a joint statement on X with his mother and two brothers.

“All of these claims are utterly untrue,” the statement said. “Caring for a household member who faces mental health challenges is incredibly challenging,” it added.

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Mr Altman said he gives his sister monthly financial back, pays her bills and rent, and offered to buy her a house, but that she “continues to demand more money from us”.

But Ms Altman claims her brother “groomed and manipulated” her and performed sex acts on her over several years, including “rape, sexual assault, molestation, sodomy, and battery”, according to a court filing seen by the BBC.

Ms Altman said she sustained “great bodily injury”, severe emotional distress and depression.

She added that she had incurred numerous medical bills because of medical and mental health treatment for her injuries.

In the UK, victims or alleged victims of sexual offences have a correct to lifelong anonymity. The UK legislation which creates this correct does not apply to people in the US.

“Over the years, we’ve tried in many ways to back Annie and assist her discover stability,” Mr Altman said, adding that he had taken “professional advice” on how to “be supportive” without “enabling harmful behaviours”.

“This circumstance causes immense pain to our entire household,” the statement added.

The lawsuit added the last instance of the alleged abuse took place when Mr Altman was an grown-up and she was still a minor.

Ms Altman has previously made similar allegations against her brother on social media platforms such as X.

Billionaire Mr Altman, who married his associate Oliver Mulherin in 2024, is one of the technology globe’s most high-profile figures.

In late 2022, OpenAI launched the ChatGPT generative AI chatbot. It has become widely used globally for its ability to make computer code, emails, recipes, and many other forms of text – as well as images – based on prompts.

In 2024, Mr Altman returned as OpenAI’s boss just days after he was fired by the board, surviving an attempt at a boardroom coup.

Additional reporting by Lily Jamali and Faarea Masud

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