Bay Area experts divided on Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion suspect's use of artificial intelligence

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Following the Cybertruck explosion outside Trump Tower in Las Vegas on New Year's Day, investigators are now saying they believe the suspect used artificial intelligence.

"We also have clear evidence in this case now that the suspect used ChatGPT, artificial intelligence, to help plan his attack," said Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill.

Police say the suspect's search history from ChatGPT showed he used the AI tool to look for information on topics such as explosive targets, as well as how far certain rounds of ammunition would travel.

The Las Vegas Sheriff calling the suspect's use of generative AI a "game changer".

"It's actually the worst-case scenario that we are afraid of," said professor Ahmed Banafa.

Professor Banafa is a tech expert at San Jose State University.

He was a part of a group of Silicon Valley leaders who wrote a letter to the White House in 2023, urging President Biden to create guidelines surrounding the creation and use of AI.

Banafa says the Cybertruck explosion is exactly the type of incident that letter was hoping to stop.

"If somebody is asking about something like this. Information is available but at the same time, this is going to be a flag. Either you block that information or you alert the authorities," Banafa said.

RELATED: Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion suspect used ChatGPT to plan attack: police

Some disagree though.

That includes Josh Richman - a spokesperson for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

"We're not sure we see how this is a game changer, given that such information has been available online via traditional search engines for decades. And in public libraries for a century before that," he said.

ChatGPT creator, OpenAI, echoed those sentiments and said they were working with law enforcement.

On Tuesday they released a statement which reads in part:

"We are saddened by this incident and committed to seeing AI tools used responsibly. Our models are designed to refuse harmful instructions and minimize harmful content."

But with artificial intelligence only expected to advance at an exponential pace moving forward, Banafa believes now is the time to act.

"We still can catch this early before it gets out of control."

The suspect in the Las Vegas incident died during the explosion.