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Message: [QUOTE="Shamiso, post: 93895, member: 160"] DraftKings faces fresh heat over claims that AI helped flag gamblers who kept losing cash. Officials in several states and members of Congress want answers about how betting apps use customer data to drive repeat bets. New York has taken a keen interest. Lawyers from the state's attorney general's office have spoken with three ex-DraftKings staff members about its data systems. Those talks involve teams that deal with consumer fraud and online tech, though the full scope of the inquiry remains unclear. Louisiana has also put the firm under review. Rather than grant a fresh five-year license, state regulators gave DraftKings a four-month extension with conditions. The company must hand over missing forms and explain its use of AI to investigators. Congress has joined the fray. Senator Richard Blumenthal and Representatives Paul Tonko and Valerie Foushee sent requests about VIP perks and AI use. FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, Fanatics, Kalshi, and Polymarket also received letters. Here's the issue. Former DraftKings staff described machine-learning tools that could spot users likely to bet again despite past losses. Some feared those systems might put people with gambling problems at greater risk. DraftKings rejects that claim. Its stance is that AI does not pick out users for ads due to lost bets or signs of harmful gambling. The firm also says talks with gaming watchdogs are a routine part of its work. Blumenthal, though, sees a real risk of betting apps using AI to keep users hooked. Lawmakers also cited a test in which a person who acted like an at-risk gambler still got DraftKings VIP status. That has raised more questions about how firms select their top clients. Meanwhile, New York's gaming board has backed a plan to curb tailored betting ads. Under the draft rules, apps could no longer use automated tools to pitch bets or deals based on a user's past wagers and losses. But the rule is not law yet. A 60-day window for public feedback comes first, with room for changes and another vote. DraftKings had pushed back on an earlier draft, arguing that broad AI limits might block fair uses of the tech and hurt the user experience. Brian O'Dwyer, who chairs the New York State Gaming Commission, has raised concerns about how fast betting tech has grown. Legal sports wagers have brought the state billions in taxes, yet he fears the same tools could help firms get more cash from users who may not grasp the risks. In Baton Rouge, two DraftKings leaders faced direct questions from Louisiana's gaming board. Chairman Christopher Hebert said claims about the firm's data practices deserved a close look. Paul Liberman, a DraftKings co-founder and its president, told the board that the platform can tell who wins and who loses. He denied that it picks out losing bettors for special treatment. Liberman also drew a line between a loss and the cost of having fun. He argued that most people who place bets will not come out ahead and that their cash goes toward entertainment. That view formed part of his defense as regulators pressed for more detail. For DraftKings, the focus is shifting from what AI can do to how the firm puts it to use. Regulators want to know whether personal data helps keep at-risk customers betting, while the company maintains that its marketing does not work that way. [/QUOTE]

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