California arson suspect used ChatGPT to generate an image of a burning city, DOJ claims

Here is a 188-word summary of the news article: Federal authorities have arrested a suspect, Jonathan Rinderknecht, in connection with the devastating Palisades fire in California that killed 12 people and burned over 23,000 acres. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), evidence against Rinderknecht includes video surveillance, witness statements, and cellphone records placing him near the fire's origin. Notably, the DOJ claims Rinderknecht used the AI chatbot ChatGPT to generate an image of a "dystopian painting showing in part a burning forest and a crowd fleeing from it" a few months before the fire started. Prosecutors allege Rinderknecht, who lived in the Pacific Palisades at the time, parked his car near a trailhead, walked on the trail, and started the blaze just after midnight on January 1st, 2025. The Lachman Fire that Rinderknecht allegedly ignited later reignited and grew into the Palisades wildfire, the third most destructive in California history. It destroyed over 6,000 structures across the Pacific Palisades, Topanga, and Malibu regions. Rinderknecht is now facing federal charges for maliciously starting the devastating blaze.