OpenAI restores ChatGPT in Italy, addresses regulator demands

OPENAI restored access to its ChatGPT chatbot for Italian users after the artificial intelligence researcher said it has addressed concerns raised in March by that country’s privacy regulator.

The Italian Data Protection Authority, known as Garante, launched a probe over techniques used to gather users’ personal information, citing a lack of a legal basis to justify pooling and storing user data to train the algorithms for ChatGPT.

It also cited concerns about the absence of filters to ensure that those who interact with the chatbot are older than 13 years old. OpenAI, which is backed by Microsoft, shut down access to the system for Italian users.

OpenAI’s generative artificial intelligence has spurred excitement since ChatGPT debuted for users and set off a contest among major technology companies to incorporate it into their products and tools. 

OpenAI said it has posted an explanation about how it collects and uses training data and is offering “greater visibility” into its privacy policies and opt-out forms.

It also added a new form for those in the European Union who want to object to the use of their personal data for training AI programs, as well as a tool to verify ages in Italy when customers sign up. 

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“We appreciate the Garante for being collaborative, and we look forward to ongoing constructive discussions,” the company said in a statement. 

Regulators in Italy confirmed in a statement that they have allowed access to ChatGPT. BLOOMBERG