The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced new enforcement actions against five artificial intelligence companies as part of its initiative to combat deceptive practices in the AI and machine learning sector.

The five companies incoude DoNotPay, Ascend Ecom, Ecommerce Empire Builders, Rytr, and FBA Machine.

Under the banner of Operation AI Comply, the FTC has targeted companies that claim to use AI services in their products or operations.

“Using AI tools to trick, mislead, or defraud people is illegal. The FTC’s enforcement actions make clear that there is no AI exemption from the laws on the books. By cracking down on unfair or deceptive practices in these markets, FTC is ensuring that honest businesses and innovators can get a fair shot and consumers are being protected,” FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said.

For instance, FTC found that DoNotPay claimed to offer an AI service that was “the world’s first robot lawyer,” but the product failed to live up to its lofty claims that the service could substitute for the expertise of a human lawyer.

The FTC said the company promised that its service would allow consumers to “sue for assault without a lawyer” and “generate perfectly valid legal documents in no time,” and that the company would “replace the $200-billion-dollar legal industry with artificial intelligence.” DoNotPay, however, could not deliver on these promises. 

Similarly, Ascend Ecom claimed its “cutting-edge” AI tools would enable consumers to quickly earn thousands of dollars a month in passive income through online storefronts. The FTC complaint alleges that this scheme has defrauded consumers of at least $25 million.