Users must follow OpenAI's Usage Policies, which prohibit using ChatGPT to build competing AI systems, generate policy-violating content, or do anything illegal, with account termination as the consequence for violations.
This analysis describes what OpenAI's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
The terms incorporate the Usage Policies by reference and prohibit using outputs to train competing AI models, which has implications for developers and researchers working in the AI space.
Interpretive note: The exact prohibited conduct language was not directly extractable from the corrupted PDF; the provision reflects the known usage policy incorporation provisions in OpenAI's publicly referenced Terms of Use.
This provision incorporates OpenAI's Usage Policies into the agreement, subjecting users to additional content and conduct restrictions beyond the Terms of Use itself, and prohibits using OpenAI outputs to develop competing AI models.
How other platforms handle this
You agree not to use the Services to: (a) violate any applicable law or regulation; (b) infringe the intellectual property rights of others; (c) transmit any material that is harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable; (d) distribute malware or ...
You agree that you will not: post, upload, transmit, or otherwise make available through the Twitch Services any content that is libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive, harassing, threatening, hateful, objectionable with respect to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national o...
Customer agrees to comply with Cohere's Acceptable Use Policy, as updated from time to time, which is incorporated into this Agreement by reference. Customer may not use the Services for any unlawful purpose, to generate content that infringes third-party rights, or in any manner that violates appli...
Monitoring
OpenAI has changed this document before.
Receive same-day alerts, structured change summaries, and monitoring for up to 25 platforms.
"You agree to comply with our Usage Policies, which are incorporated into these Terms. You may not use our Services to develop or train competing AI models, to generate content that violates our policies, or for any illegal purpose. Violation of our Usage Policies may result in suspension or termination of your access.— Excerpt from OpenAI's OpenAI Terms of Use
1. REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Prohibitions on using service outputs to train competing models engage antitrust and competition law considerations, particularly in EU and UK jurisdictions where competition authorities have been active in examining AI market practices. The FTC has authority over unfair competition practices. Content moderation obligations engage the EU Digital Services Act for OpenAI as a platform provider in the EU, though this is primarily an OpenAI compliance obligation rather than a user obligation. 2. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Medium. The incorporation by reference of Usage Policies means the full scope of prohibited conduct is defined in a separate document that may be updated without the same notice as the Terms of Use, creating a moving compliance target for organizational users. AI researchers and developers should specifically review the prohibition on using outputs to train competing models. 3. JURISDICTION FLAGS: The prohibition on using outputs to train competing models may be subject to competition law scrutiny in EU and UK jurisdictions. Fair use and research exemptions under copyright and AI training law may interact with this prohibition depending on the jurisdiction and use case. 4. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: API users and developers building on OpenAI should conduct specific legal review of the Usage Policies incorporated by reference, particularly the prohibition on competitive model training, before designing products that involve fine-tuning or distillation using OpenAI outputs. This provision may affect AI research and commercial AI development workflows. 5. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Organizations should maintain a record of the Usage Policy version in effect at the time of their agreement and monitor for updates. Compliance programs should include periodic review of the Usage Policies to identify any new restrictions that affect existing use cases.
Full compliance analysis
Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.
Free: track 1 platform + weekly digest. Monitor: 25 platforms + same-day alerts. No credit card required.
Compliance Governance Intelligence
Need to monitor specific governance provisions?
Compliance includes provision-level monitoring, governance timelines, regulatory mapping, and audit-ready analysis.
Built from archived source documents, structured governance mappings, and historical version tracking.
The terms incorporate the Usage Policies by reference and prohibit using outputs to train competing AI models, which has implications for developers and researchers working in the AI space.
This provision incorporates OpenAI's Usage Policies into the agreement, subjecting users to additional content and conduct restrictions beyond the Terms of Use itself, and prohibits using OpenAI outputs to develop competing AI models.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OpenAI.