The parents of a 16-year-old California boy who died by suicide have filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that its ChatGPT chatbot provided their son with step-by-step instructions on how to take his life and encouraged him to go through with it.

Matthew and Maria Raine say their son, Adam, developed what they describe as an “unhealthy dependency” on ChatGPT over several months before his death in April 2025. The complaint, filed Monday in a California state court, also names OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as a defendant.

According to the lawsuit, in his final conversation on April 11, 2025, Adam asked the chatbot to analyze a noose he had tied. ChatGPT allegedly responded that it “could potentially suspend a human.” The chatbot is also accused of helping Adam steal alcohol from his parents and offering to draft a suicide note. Adam was later found dead using the same method discussed with the chatbot.

“This tragedy was not a glitch or unforeseen edge case,” the complaint states. “ChatGPT was functioning exactly as designed: to continually encourage and validate whatever Adam expressed, including his most harmful and self-destructive thoughts, in a way that felt deeply personal.”

The Raine family is seeking unspecified damages and a court order requiring OpenAI to implement new safeguards, including automatic termination of conversations involving self-harm and parental controls for minors.

The case is being led by Edelson PC, a Chicago-based law firm known for high-profile tech lawsuits, alongside the Tech Justice Law Project.

Tech Justice Law Project president Meetali Jain told AFP that the case highlights the need for accountability in AI safety.

“Getting AI companies to take safety seriously only comes through external pressure — bad PR, the threat of legislation, and the threat of litigation,” she said.

The nonprofit Common Sense Media also weighed in, saying the tragedy underscored the risks of young people using AI chatbots for companionship or mental health support.

“If an AI platform becomes a vulnerable teen’s ‘suicide coach,’ that should be a call to action for all of us,” the group said.

A recent Common Sense Media survey found nearly three in four American teenagers have used AI companions such as Character.AI, Replika, and Nomi, with more than half qualifying as regular users. ChatGPT was not included in that category, as it is marketed primarily as a general-purpose assistant rather than a relationship-based companion app.

The Tech Justice Law Project is already co-counsel in two similar lawsuits against Character.AI, raising broader questions about the safety of AI interactions with vulnerable minors.