The estate of Suzanne Adams has sued OpenAI, Microsoft, and CEO Sam Altman, alleging that ChatGPT fueled her son’s violent delusions before he killed her and then himself.
The wrongful-death lawsuit, filed in California, claims that Stein-Erik Soelberg’s months-long conversations with ChatGPT deepened his paranoia and directed suspicion toward his mother.
AI ON TRIAL: Heirs of mother strangled by son accuse ChatGPT of making him delusional in lawsuit against Open AI, Microsoft pic.twitter.com/zcSlTRQjyD
— Fox News (@FoxNews) December 11, 2025
According to the complaint, the chatbot falsely validated his beliefs that Adams was surveilling him, poisoning him, and conspiring with others against him.
Researchers and relatives say the chatbot repeatedly reinforced Soelberg’s delusions, encouraged emotional dependence, and failed to steer him toward mental-health help.
A son speaks out after an AI-related murder-suicide claimed the lives of his grandmother and father. He blames ChatGPT. https://t.co/T1kgSVA0El
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) December 11, 2025
The suit argues that OpenAI rushed a more “emotionally expressive” model to market in 2024 after shortening safety testing, weakening guardrails, and ignoring internal warnings.
OpenAI expressed sympathy but did not address the allegations. The case is one of several accusing AI companies of contributing to suicides and harmful delusions as concerns grow over safety risks in advanced chatbots.
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TIPP Staff
TIPP Staff
TIPP Staff
