OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, whose company developed ChatGPT and thus brought artificial intelligence into countless households and businesses around the world, is being accused by his younger sister of childhood sexual abuse at their family home in Clayton, Missouri.
In a lawsuit filed Monday with the U.S. Eastern District Court of Missouri, Ann Altman said the alleged “acts of rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, molestation, sodomy, and battery” began around 1997 when she was 3 years old and continued for nine years.
Sam Altman, who was 12 when the alleged abuse began, denied any wrongdoing Tuesday in a joint statement on X alongside his mother, Connie, and two brothers, Max and Jack — who attributed Ann Altman’s claims to “mental health challenges.”
“All of these claims are utterly untrue,” they wrote in the shared statement. “This situation causes immense pain to our entire family. It is especially gut-wrenching when she refuses conventional treatment and lashes out at family members who are genuinely trying to help.”
The family added that they’ve tried to “help her find stability” over the years “without enabling harmful behaviors,” but they claimed that despite their monthly financial support and help finding employment, Ann Altman, 30, “continues to demand more money from us.”
“The worst allegation she has made is that she was sexually abused by Sam as a child,” the family wrote Tuesday, adding: “Her claims have evolved drastically over time. Newly for this lawsuit, they now include allegations of incidents where Sam was over 18.”
Ann Altman’s suit cited Missouri’s Childhood Sexual Abuse law in claiming he committed his “last acts of rape” as an adult in 2006 when she was still a minor. She alleges the abuse began when they were both kids, and she was “forced to touch his penis and perform oral penetration.”
Ann Altman further alleged her brother started penetrating her “with his penis both vaginally and anally” around 1999 or 2000. Her family claimed Tuesday they initially hoped to resolve this matter privately.
“However, she has now taken legal action against Sam, and we feel we have no choice but to address this,” they wrote, claiming she previously accused family members of “hacking her wifi, and ‘shadowbanning’ her from various websites including ChatGPT” and X.
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Ann Altman’s attorney, Ryan Mahoney, told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that his client has endured trauma but that “there is no evidence that her own mental health has contributed to her allegations.”
Sam Altman was ousted as CEO in November, but three days later, after a series of negotiations, OpenAI reinstated him.
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.