TLDR A West Virginia bettor filed a proposed federal class action against DraftKings on Sept. 30 in Massachusetts. The lawsuit claims DraftKings used AI to find gamblers most likely to bet and lose more after promotions. The plaintiff says he received at least 70 promotional messages in about 30 days. DraftKings denies using AI to target customers based on losses or problem gambling signs. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is separately reviewing AI use by sportsbooks.
DraftKings is facing a proposed federal class-action lawsuit. It accuses the sports betting company of using artificial intelligence to target gamblers most likely to keep betting and losing money.
West Virginia resident Daniel Vest filed the complaint on Sept. 30 in federal court in Massachusetts. DraftKings is based in Boston.
The lawsuit claims the company “weaponized” AI by using customers’ personal betting data to decide who should receive promotions. DraftKings denies the allegations.
What the Lawsuit Claims
Vest says he has gambled thousands of dollars each year with DraftKings for several years. He claims he received at least 70 emails, texts, push notifications, and other messages from the company in about 30 days ending Sept. 25.
He wants to represent a nationwide group of DraftKings customers. That group would include people the company’s AI systems allegedly identified as especially responsive to gambling incentives.
The complaint relies on a September investigation by The New York Times. The newspaper reported that DraftKings built a machine-learning model to predict which customers would gamble, and lose, more after receiving promotions.
According to the Times, the system gave customers an internal “elasticity” score. Customers labeled “inelastic” were unlikely to bet much more because of promotions, so they received fewer incentives.
Customers labeled “elastic” were seen as better targets for promotions. A former employee told the Times the