TLDR
- AI startup DoNotPay, which calls itself the ‘world’s first robot lawyer,’ has been fined $193,000 by the FTC for allegedly making “false and misleading” statements. It has settled with the agency “without admitting liability.”
- The agency said DoNotPay’s legal services are not at par with human lawyers.
- DoNotPay has been featured on NBC’s Today show, Bloomberg TV, Forbes and other media outlets.
An AI startup that purports to act like a ‘robot lawyer’ to help consumers fight parking tickets, send cease-and-desist letters and perform other legal services has been fined by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
The FTC charged DoNotPay Inc. with allegedly making “false and misleading” statements to the public by claiming to be the ‘world’s first robot lawyer.’ In reality, the startup’s services do not meet the legal standards set by federal and state laws, according to the agency.
The FTC is fining the startup $193,000 to settle these charges. It would also require DoNotPay to tell customers about the limitations of its legal services.
A company spokesperson sent this statement to The AI Innovator: “DoNotPay is pleased to have worked constructively with the FTC to settle this case and fully resolve these issues, without admitting liability. The complaint relates to the usage of a few hundred customers some years ago (out of millions of people), with services that have long been discontinued.”
Founded by a British entrepreneur, Joshua Browder, DoNotPay uses the ChatGPT API to create legal letters and other content, according to the FTC. But despite claims that DoNotPay acts like a human lawyer, the agency said “none” of its technologies have been trained on a comprehensive body of federal and state laws, regulations, and judicial decisions.
“DoNotPay employees have not tested the quality and accuracy of the legal documents and advice generated by most of (its) law-related features,” the FTC charged.
Clients who subscribed to DoNotPay’s services have complained that it generated legal documents that were “not fit for use.”
Browder and DoNotPay have been featured by national media outlets including NBC’s Today show, Bloomberg TV, Forbes and others. The Today show called DoNotPay the “Robin Hood of the Internet.”
According to its website, DoNotPay is backed by top VC firms including Greylock Partners, Andreesen Horowitz, Founders Fund, among others.
