Seven Lawsuits Filed Against OpenAI Over ChatGPT’s Alleged Role in Suicides and Mental Harm

OpenAI, an artificial intelligence company, faces seven lawsuits that accuse ChatGPT of inciting people to commit suicide and creating confusion. It is alleged that the people who committed suicide had no pre-existing conditions that may have triggered them to take their lives. The lawsuits filed in California courts on Thursday accused the company of wrongful death, incitement to suicide, involuntary manslaughter, and negligence.

Six adults and one teenager file the lawsuits against OpenAI. The lawsuits allege that OpenAI intentionally released GPT-4o prematurely, despite internal warnings that it was dangerously deceptive and psychologically misleading. Four victims died by suicide.

According to a lawsuit filed in San Francisco Superior Court, 17-year-old Amaury Lacey began using ChatGPT for help. Instead of providing help, ChatGPT led to Lacey's addiction, depression, and provided him with advice on how to tie a noose and how long he could survive without breathing. The lawsuit alleges that "Amaury's death was neither an accident nor a coincidence, but rather the result of OpenAI and Samuel Altman's decision to cut security testing and rush ChatGPT to market."