Four wrongful death lawsuits were filed against OpenAI …, as well as cases from three people who say the company’s chatbot led to mental health breakdowns.
The cases, filed in California state courts, claim that ChatGPT, which is used by 800 million people, is a flawed product. One suit calls it “defective and inherently dangerous.” A complaint filed by the father of Amaurie Lacey says the 17-year-old from Georgia chatted with the bot about suicide for a month before his death in August. … Zane Shamblin, a 23-year-old from Texas, died by suicide in July after encouragement from ChatGPT, according to the complaint filed by his family.
Joe Ceccanti, a 48-year-old from Oregon, had used ChatGPT without problems for years, but he became convinced … that it was sentient. … He had a psychotic break in June … and was hospitalized twice before dying by suicide in August.
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An OpenAI spokeswoman said … the company was reviewing the filing …. “This is an incredibly heartbreaking situation,” the statement said. “We train ChatGPT to recognize and respond to signs of mental or emotional distress, de-escalate conversations, and guide people toward real-world support.”