10 Total
3 High severity
6 Medium severity
1 Low severity
Summary

This is OpenAI's Terms of Use, the legal agreement that governs how you can use ChatGPT, Sora, and other OpenAI products. The agreement states that OpenAI may use the content you input into its services to train and improve its AI models unless you opt out, and it includes a mandatory arbitration clause that requires US users to resolve disputes individually rather than through class action lawsuits. If you are a US user and want to opt out of arbitration, the terms typically provide a 30-day window from account creation to submit an opt-out request in writing.

Technical / Legal Breakdown

This document is OpenAI's Terms of Use governing consumer access to OpenAI services including ChatGPT, Sora, and the API, establishing the contractual basis for use of those services under California law with a mandatory arbitration clause and class action waiver for US users. The agreement states that users retain ownership of input content but grant OpenAI a broad license to use input and output content to operate, improve, and develop its services, and the terms authorize OpenAI to use conversation data for model training unless users opt out through available controls. Notably, the terms include a mandatory individual arbitration clause with a class action waiver applicable to US users, and assert that OpenAI may modify outputs or decline to generate content at its discretion; the agreement also asserts that AI-generated outputs may be inaccurate and should not be relied upon for professional advice, which places reliance risk on the user. The document engages GDPR and UK GDPR for EU and UK users (who are directed to a separate EU Terms of Use), CCPA for California residents, COPPA with respect to minors under 13 who are prohibited from using the services, and the EU AI Act insofar as it applies to AI system providers operating in the EU; a separate EU-specific terms document is referenced for EU residents. Compliance teams should note that the arbitration and class action waiver provisions may be unenforceable in certain jurisdictions including EU member states, and that the data-use-for-training provisions require evaluation under GDPR lawful basis requirements and CCPA disclosure obligations.

Institutional Analysis

Institutional analysis available with Professional

Regulatory exposure by statute, material risk assessment, vendor due diligence action items, and enforcement precedent. Available on Professional.

Start Professional free trial
High — 3 provisions
Medium — 6 provisions
Low — 1 provision

Monitoring

OpenAI has updated this document before.

Watcher includes same-day alerts, structured change summaries, and monitoring for up to 10 platforms.

Start Watcher free trial Or create a free account →

Professional Governance Intelligence

Need provision-level monitoring and regulatory mapping?

Professional includes governance timelines, compliance memos, audit-ready analysis, and full provision tracking.

Start Professional free trial

Cross-platform context

See how other platforms handle Account Termination Rights and similar clauses.

Compare across platforms →

Mapped Governance Frameworks

BIPA
Illinois, USA
View official text ↗
California AB 2013 AI Training Data Transparency
US-CA
View official text ↗
CCPA/CPRA
California, USA
View official text ↗
Connecticut Data Privacy Act Amendments
US-CT
View official text ↗
CAN-SPAM
United States Federal
View official text ↗
DMCA
United States Federal
View official text ↗
DSA
European Union
View official text ↗
FAA
United States Federal
View official text ↗
FTC Act Section 5
United States Federal
View official text ↗
GDPR
European Union
View official text ↗
Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act
US-IN
View official text ↗
Kentucky Consumer Data Protection Act
US-KY
View official text ↗
UK GDPR
United Kingdom
View official text ↗
Universal Opt-Out Mechanism Expansion 2026
US
View official text ↗

Related Analysis

Privacy · May 3, 2026
OpenAI Privacy Policy Update May 2026: New Terms Authorize Advertiser Data Sharing

OpenAI expanded its data sharing terms to include third-party marketing partners. The updated policy authorizes the use of personal data fo…

Archival ProvenanceSource & Archival Record
Last Captured March 10, 2026 03:21 UTC
Capture Method Automated scheduled archival capture
Document ID CA-D-000009
Version ID CA-V-000065
SHA-256 e0edc0aa44c9fd8b5de3a7ffc7395c0ab00311dfdecdca5b9bb6103060b21afa
✓ Snapshot stored ✓ Text extracted ✓ Change verified ✓ Hash verified

Governance Monitoring

Monitor governance changes across the platforms you rely on.

Structured alerts for policy changes, governance events, and provision updates across 318+ platforms.

Create free account Compare plans