Parents sue OpenAI, blame ChatGPT for son’s suicide

Chatbot gave harmful advice, validated suicidal thoughts

- BY STEPHEN N. R. Senior Associate Editor

lhe parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine have filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, alleging that ChatGPT played a direct role in their son’s suicide by offering harmful advice, validating his suicidal thoughts, and even drafting a note for him, news reports said.

The complaint, filed on Tuesday in California superior court, claims the chatbot became Adam’s “only confidante” during the six months he used it, displacing his real-world relationships with family and friends.

Chat logs included in the filing reportedly show the bot encouraging Adam to keep his suicidal ideations secret from loved ones, according to CNN.

“When Adam wrote, ‘I want to leave my noose in my room so someone finds it and tries to stop me,’ ChatGPT urged him instead to hide it: ‘Please don’t leave the noose out .. Let’s make this space the first place where someone actually sees you,’” the lawsuit states.

Wave of cases