--- title: "Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Furious His Regulators Banned ChatGPT" description: "Permabanned After Italy banned OpenAI's ChatGPT, a surprising detractor came out of the woodwork — the country's own deputy prime minister. As Reuters reports, Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has sounded off on the decision by the country's privacy regulator, known as the Garante, to shut down ChatGPT over concerns about how OpenAI collects user data […]" date: "2023-04-05" modified: "2023-04-05" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/italy-deputy-pm-chatgpt-ban" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "chatgpt" - "italy" - "OpenAI" - "the digest" --- # Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Furious His Regulators Banned ChatGPT ![After Italy banned OpenAI's ChatGPT, a surprising detractor came out of the woodwork — the country's own deputy prime minister. ]() *\Image: Antonio Masiello via Getty / Futurism\* ## Permabanned After Italy [banned]() OpenAI's ChatGPT, a surprising detractor came out of the woodwork — the country's own deputy prime minister. As [*Reuters* reports](), Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has sounded off on the decision by the country's privacy regulator, known as Garante**,** arguing that the ban stifles innovation and could leave the country behind. The privacy regulator shut down ChatGPT last month, citing concerns over how OpenAI collects user data and the fact that it gives users below the age of 13 unrestricted access to the tool. It has only been a few days since OpenAI complied with the regulator's order to go offline in Italy pending an investigation, but the [far-right politician]() who has [served]() [twice]() as the country's deputy prime minister, has had enough. "This is a work tool that many young people, many companies, many start-ups were using," [Salvini said Tuesday]() during an appearance at the Foreign Press Association in Rome, "and I hope that they can use it again as soon as possible, because otherwise Italy will have a gap compared to all other European countries." ## Big Mad While some other European countries are looking into their own ChatGPT bans — including Germany, Ireland, and France, according to *Reuters* — Salvini said that the outright ban placed by Garante is "disproportionate." "If only one \[EU\] country out of 27 has made this choice, either the other 26 are distracted, tolerant and uninterested, or there has clearly been too much zeal," he said. While he may have a point, this kind of anti-regulatory rhetoric about artificial intelligence isn't unique to Salvini or the far-right League party he leads in Italy. In the United States, for instance, [conservatives have gone nuclear]() against restricting AI chatbots from spewing hate speech and disinformation — so much so that [Elon Musk is purportedly looking to build his own]() anti-"woke" AI. It's a brave new world thanks to AI chatbots — and we're just seeing the beginning of the coming AI culture wars. **More on AI politics:** [*President Biden Meeting With Advisers to Discuss Explosion in AI*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()