OpenAI said on August 16, 2024, that it banned a cluster of ChatGPT accounts linked to STORM-2035, an influence operation Microsoft had described as Iranian. The accounts used ChatGPT to generate articles and social-media comments about topics including the U.S. presidential election; third-party websites and social accounts distributed the material. OpenAI reported little or no engagement with most identified posts and said it had no indication the articles were widely shared.
What OpenAI said it disrupted in August 2024
OpenAI said the accounts used its models to create content on several subjects, including candidates on both sides of the U.S. presidential election. The generated material was then posted through websites and social-media accounts; ChatGPT itself did not publish it. OpenAI’s August announcement described the accounts as linked to STORM-2035, which Microsoft had reported as an Iranian network.
OpenAI identified two kinds of activity:
- Long-form articles: English-language pieces published on five websites. Some sites presented themselves as progressive news outlets and others as conservative ones.
- Short social-media comments: Posts in English and Spanish. OpenAI’s initial report identified a dozen X accounts and one Instagram account.
The subjects included Gaza, Israel’s presence at the Olympics, and the U.S. election, as well as Venezuela, Latinx rights, and Scottish independence. Fashion and beauty posts also appeared; OpenAI said these may have been intended to make the accounts seem more authentic or help them build a following. In its October follow-up, OpenAI said the long-form articles were typically 700 to 900 words and that accounts sometimes used its models for basic research, including tips for increasing social-media engagement.
What the reports establish about attribution
Attribution in the available reports comes from company assessments, not a court finding identifying individual operators. Microsoft’s August 8, 2024, report described STORM-2035 as an Iranian network operating four websites that masqueraded as news outlets and published polarizing material for U.S. audiences across political divides. That report preceded OpenAI’s announcement, but it does not independently identify the people behind particular accounts.
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OpenAI’s October report said Microsoft had previously reported some of the sites under the STORM-2035 name. It also said Meta confirmed, after information sharing, that the Instagram account was connected to an Iranian network Meta disrupted in December 2022. OpenAI said its own visibility helped connect website publishing with social-media posting. These are corroborating company intelligence assessments; they should not be read as public proof of individual operators’ identities.
How much audience did the initial activity reach?
OpenAI reported that most of the social-media posts it identified received few or no likes, shares, or comments. It found no indication that the articles were being widely shared across social media. OpenAI’s institutional statement was: “We have seen no indication that this content reached a meaningful audience.”
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OpenAI assessed the activity at the low end of Category 2 on the Brookings Breakout Scale, a six-level framework. That is OpenAI’s assessment based on its investigation and observed data, not a definitive measure of every possible view or share. It does not establish that the activity changed the election or reached a large audience.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How later OpenAI reports differ from the 2024 account cluster
OpenAI reported further Iran-linked activity in 2025, but the dated reports describe later account activity rather than one continuous set of accounts. The reports also refer to different operational clusters and evidence.
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| Report | Accounts and platforms described | Content and attribution | Engagement evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 16, 2024 | OpenAI identified a dozen X accounts and one Instagram account, linked to a cluster of ChatGPT accounts it banned. | Articles on five websites and short English- and Spanish-language comments. OpenAI linked the accounts to STORM-2035; Microsoft had described the network as Iranian. | Most identified posts had few or no likes, shares, or comments; OpenAI found no indication the articles were widely shared. |
| February 1, 2025 | OpenAI said it banned five ChatGPT accounts. One generated content for both IUVM- and STORM-2035-linked assets. | OpenAI said a small number of tweets and articles were posted on third-party assets publicly linked to IUVM and STORM-2035. It said the shared account suggested a potential connection at least at the operator level, not that the two operations were proven to be one organization. | OpenAI said the activity did not appear to build a substantial following. Typical tweets received single-digit engagement or none. |
| June 1, 2025 | OpenAI described banned recidivist activity associated with STORM-2035; the report did not identify it as the original 2024 accounts. | Persian-language prompts produced batches of short English and Spanish comments, later posted on X by accounts posing as residents of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Venezuela. OpenAI assessed the activity as likely Iran-linked. | The June report’s activity description is distinct; the cited account of that activity does not provide a comparable operation-wide audience figure. |
February 2025: accounts posting to assets linked to two operations
OpenAI said five banned accounts generated a small number of tweets and articles later posted on third-party assets publicly linked to IUVM and STORM-2035. One account generated content for both. OpenAI said one account also generated long-form articles for al-Sarira. The company’s dated example was the al-Sarira X account, which had 157 followers and was following 895 accounts as of January 16, 2025. Those are figures for that account on that date, not estimates of the total operation’s reach.
June 2025: reported recidivist activity
OpenAI said it banned activity associated with the likely Iran-linked STORM-2035 operation disrupted the previous August. It described Persian-language prompts used to produce short English and Spanish comments in batches. The comments were later posted on X by accounts presenting themselves as residents of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, and Venezuela. Reported topics included Latino rights, Scottish independence, Irish reunification, Venezuela and Cuba, Palestinian rights, and Iran’s military and diplomatic standing.
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What to take away from the reports
- OpenAI’s August 2024 announcement concerned a specific cluster of ChatGPT accounts linked to STORM-2035, not evidence that ChatGPT independently distributed the material.
- The initial content appeared on websites and social accounts, and OpenAI said its observed engagement was low.
- Microsoft and Meta provided related company intelligence, but the public reports do not amount to a court determination identifying individual operators.
- OpenAI’s February and June 2025 disclosures describe later activity and should not be merged with the original August 2024 account set.
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