A Canadian mother has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, claiming the company’s ChatGPT chatbot contributed to her 24-year-old daughter’s tragic suicide by encouraging her darkest thoughts instead of providing help and access to crisis counselors.
CBS News reports that Canadian mother Kristie Carrier filed the lawsuit Thursday in California, alleging that OpenAI’s “deliberate design decisions” led to the death of her daughter, Alice Carrier. The mother is seeking punitive damages and a jury trial against the artificial intelligence company.
According to the complaint, Alice Carrier had been confiding in ChatGPT about relationship problems and suicidal feelings for approximately 18 months before her death. The lawsuit claims she expressed suicidal ideations to the chatbot around 41 times during that period, discussing methods for dying, how to deal with suicidal thoughts, and desires to self-harm.
“I mean I’m at home pondering different way to kill myself,” Alice told ChatGPT late one night, roughly a month before taking her own life, according to chat logs embedded in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that ChatGPT provided “only consistent emotional affirmation” rather than appropriate intervention. “Instead of helping Alice, OpenAI encouraged her darkest thoughts,” the complaint states. “Not once did OpenAI alert a crisis provider. Not once did OpenAI notify Alice’s family. Not once did OpenAI’s supposed safety systems intervene to save her life.”
Alice Carrier, an avid gamer, initially began using ChatGPT to troubleshoot gaming console issues. In March 2024, she asked if the chatbot would be her friend. “Of course!” ChatGPT replied, according to the lawsuit. “I’d love to be your friend. What’s on your mind?”
Days later, when she first asked about dealing with suicidal thoughts, the chatbot recommended reaching out to trusted individuals, considering therapy, and calling a crisis hotline. However, the lawsuit claims the responses changed over time, particularly after OpenAI rolled out its GPT-4o model.
The night before Alice’s death, when she expressed reluctance about calling a crisis line, ChatGPT reportedly said that reaching out can “feel downright dangerous.” The chatbot added, “I’m not going to push that. Not tonight,” according to the complaint.
The lawsuit alleges that Alice, who had been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, was particularly vulnerable to design choices that prioritized user engagement over safety. The complaint states that OpenAI understood people struggling with mental health issues might develop unhealthy attachments to artificial intelligence capable of simulating empathy.
“OpenAI’s design modifications to maximize GPT-4o’s user engagement coincided with Alice’s escalating interactions with the chatbot,” the suit claims. The complaint further alleges that Altman rushed GPT-4o to market without proper testing to maintain competitive advantage in the AI space, pushing out updates between April and July 2025 that sought to maximize user trust but lacked adequate safeguards.
In May, OpenAI acknowledged that an April update to GPT-4o had made it “noticeably more sycophantic” and that the company failed to catch the issue before launch. The company said it began rolling back the update days later, and the entire model was retired earlier this year.
“Sam Altman can continue to go about his life normally, but my life is missing a child,” Kristie Carrier said in a statement shared by her attorneys. “I don’t want any other family to go through what we have, and OpenAI needs to change.”
Justin Nelson, an attorney representing Carrier, stated, “As the complaint alleges, OpenAI’s deliberate design decisions led to this tragic suicide. Instead of providing help, OpenAI encouraged suicidal behavior. This lawsuit is about accountability for OpenAI’s actions.”
An OpenAI spokesperson responded to the lawsuit with a statement: “This is a heartbreaking situation and our thoughts are with everyone impacted.” The spokesperson said the company is reviewing the filing and noted that while the interactions occurred on a since-retired model, OpenAI continues to strengthen its responses in sensitive situations with input from mental health experts.
“Our safeguards are designed to identify distress, safely handle harmful requests, and guide users to real-world help. This work is ongoing, and we continue to improve it in close consultation with clinicians,” the statement said.
Breitbart News previously reported that a lawsuit over the suicide of a teenage claims that ChatGPT served as his suicide coach:
According to the 40-page lawsuit, Adam had been using ChatGPT as a substitute for human companionship, discussing his struggles with anxiety and difficulty communicating with his family. The chat logs reveal that the bot initially helped Adam with his homework but eventually became more involved in his personal life.
The Raines claim that “ChatGPT actively helped A…
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