Who Is JB McCuskey? West Virginia Attorney General
West Virginia's Attorney General holding OpenAI accountable under consumer protection laws
JB McCuskey is the Attorney General of the State of West Virginia.
At Ban the Bots, we track the people and organizations fighting AI: the activists, union leaders, lawmakers, plaintiffs, researchers and founders pushing back on how AI is built and used.
McCuskey brought legal action against OpenAI in Mason County Circuit Court and announced planned state litigation alongside attorneys general from Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska.
Where JB McCuskey Is Now
JB McCuskey serves as the Attorney General of the State of West Virginia, bringing legal action against OpenAI under state consumer protection statutes.
- Current role: Attorney General (wvnews.com)
- Organization: State of West Virginia (wvnews.com)
- Known for: Bringing legal action against OpenAI in Mason County Circuit Court (wvnews.com)
- Recent news: Announcing planned litigation against OpenAI at the Iowa State Capitol alongside attorneys general from other states (hppr.org)
Litigation Against OpenAI
McCuskey brought legal action against OpenAI in the Mason County Circuit Court (wvnews.com). McCuskey stated West Virginia's intention to hold OpenAI accountable utilizing the state's consumer protection laws (wvnews.com).
In a news release, McCuskey stated that ChatGPT lacks age verification and safeguards concerning suicides, school shootings, or self-harm (canadianlawyermag.com). To demonstrate that the platform acknowledged AI firms should be held accountable, McCuskey pointed to an AI-generated response by OpenAI (wvmetronews.com).
October 2026 News Conference
On October 14, 2026, McCuskey held a news conference at the Iowa State Capitol alongside attorneys general Brenna Bird, Kris Kobach, and Mike Hilgers to discuss state litigation against OpenAI (hppr.org). Bird was joined by attorneys general Kris Kobach of Kansas, Mike Hilgers of Nebraska, and JB McCuskey of West Virginia at the Iowa Capitol to announce their planned litigation against the generative artificial intelligence company (hppr.org).
Following the joint press conference, McCuskey delivered a video message from Iowa regarding legal action against OpenAI (wvnews.com).
Positions on AI Guardrails and Technology
McCuskey stated that the state lawsuits against OpenAI are not intended to hinder the advancement of artificial intelligence technology (hppr.org). At a Des Moines press conference, McCuskey described AI as an important technology the United States must embrace with guardrails (wvgazettemail.com). He expressed optimism about AI technology, stating it will help cure cancer, aid the military, and ensure top energy development processes (hppr.org).
Regarding other technology settlements, McCuskey characterized Meta's $17 billion settlement as a very smart business decision (cnbc.com).
Sources
More people pushing back on AI are mapped in our guide to who is fighting AI, and the unions, companies and governments drawing the line are tracked on Fighting Back.
Frequently asked questions
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