Details of the complaint weren't made public in an unusual move by the FTC
Snap, the ownerof social media app Snapchat, has been referred to the Department of Justice for allegedly causing "risks and harms" to young users of its My AI chatbot, the Federal Trade Commission said Thursday.
The referral stems from an investigation connected to a 2014 settlement, which alleged the Snapchat deceived users about the disappearance of messages, the FTC said, but the details of the complaint about the My AI chatbot weren't made public.
"The investigation uncovered reason to believe Snap is violating or is about to violate the law," the FTC said.
The FTC said it doesn't normally make public when it refers a complaint to the Justice Department, but "we have determined that doing so here is in the public interest."
A Snap spokesperson told ConsumerAffairs the complaint "is based on inaccuracies, and lacks concrete evidence" and comes from a "divided FTC" at the end of the Biden administration.
"While we share the FTCs focus on ensuring the thoughtful development of generative AI, this complaint would stifle innovation and competition in a critical and growing sector of the economy," the spokesperson said."We look forward to working with the new Administration on AI policy that bolsters US innovation while protecting our community."
In Feb. 2023, Snapchat launched the My AI chatbot, which is powered by artificial intelligence's so-called large-language models from the likes of OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini.
"In a chat conversation, My AI can answer a burning trivia question, offer advice on the perfect gift for your BFFs birthday, help plan a hiking trip for a long weekend, or suggest what to make for dinner," according toSnap's website.
CommissionerAndrew N. Ferguson said in a statement he didn't support the FTC's move and wasn't present at the "the farcical closed meeting at which this matter was approved."
"But I write to note my opposition to this complaint against Snap," he said."Because the complaint itself remains non-public, I cannot at this time release a detailed analysis of its many problems."
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2025-01-16 21:36:11
