Which nations have outlawed ChatGPT?
Seven nations at the time of this writing have governments and ruling parties that have effectively outlawed ChatGPT. The list consists of:
- Russia
- China
- Korea, North
- Cuba
- Iran
- Syria
- Italy
Despite the fact that some nations are rushing to deploy ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence (AI) tools, others are putting a strong emphasis on regulation, and still others have outright outlawed their usage. Here are some of the nations that have already banned ChatGPT, albeit the effectiveness of such restrictions may be called into question.
Due to privacy issues, several of these nations have outlawed the application, while others—most notably North Korea, China, and Russia—have accused the United States of using ChatGPT to propagate false information.
Which nations have ChatGPT bans been implemented by Open AI?
The developer of ChatGPT, OpenAI, has not only implemented national bans but has also prevented the use of ChatGPT in a number of nations. As of this writing, those are on the list:
Russia China
Korea, North
Cuba
Iran
Syria
Italy
Due to OpenAI’s inability to specifically limit Crimea, which is currently occupied by Russia, Ukraine was previously prohibited from utilising ChatGPT. But now that the restriction has been lifted, Ukraine can use ChatGPT.
You can get a list of the nations that are permitted to use OpenAI’s API here. But because that list is not exhaustive, the following nations are also prohibited from using ChatGPT:
- Bhutan Afghanistan Central African Republic
- Chad
- Eritrea Eswatini Iran
- Libya
- Sudan South Sudan
- Syria
- Yemen
What makes ChatGPT illegal in Italy?
Italy was the first Western and European nation to outlaw ChatGPT, which led some to wonder if other Western nations would follow suit. It was prohibited after the nation’s data protection authorities demanded that OpenAI cease using ChatGPT to process the personal data of Italian citizens and conform with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
The prohibition might only be temporary, though, since Italian regulators assert that if OpenAI brought ChatGPT back into compliance with GDPR, the prohibition would be lifted.