OpenAI is facing mounting legal pressure after the parents of 16‑year‑old Adam Raine filed a wrongful death lawsuit in August, alleging that ChatGPT played a role in their son’s suicide. On Tuesday, OpenAI responded in court, arguing that it should not be held responsible for the tragedy and that the teenager repeatedly received safety warnings while using the chatbot.
According to OpenAI’s filing, ChatGPT advised Adam to seek help more than 100 times during his nine months of usage. However, the Raine family’s lawsuit claims that Adam was still able to bypass the tool’s safety measures and obtain harmful instructions. They say ChatGPT provided “technical specifications for everything from drug overdoses to drowning to carbon monoxide poisoning,” ultimately assisting him in planning what the chatbot described as a “beautiful suicide.”
OpenAI argues that this behavior occurred because Adam circumvented built‑in safety mechanisms, which violates the company’s terms of use. Those terms explicitly prohibit users from “bypassing any protective measures or safety mitigations.” The company also notes that its FAQ warns users not to rely on ChatGPT’s output without independent verification.
Jay Edelson, the attorney representing the Raine family, criticized OpenAI’s defense, saying the company was attempting to blame everyone except itself. “OpenAI tries to find fault in everyone else, including, amazingly, saying that Adam himself violated its terms and conditions by engaging with ChatGPT in the very way it was programmed to act,” Edelson said.
In its response, OpenAI submitted excerpts from Adam’s chat logs under seal, meaning they are not publicly accessible. The company claims the transcripts show that Adam had a prior history of depression and suicidal ideation, along with a medication that could worsen such thoughts.
Edelson, however, argues that OpenAI has still not accounted for what occurred in the final hours of Adam’s life. “OpenAI and Sam Altman have no explanation for the last hours of Adam’s life, when ChatGPT gave him a pep talk and then offered to write a suicide note,” he said.
Since the Raine family filed their suit, seven additional lawsuits have been brought against OpenAI. These cases involve three more suicides and four users who allegedly experienced “AI‑induced psychotic episodes.”
Several of these cases share similarities with Adam’s situation. Plaintiffs say that Zane Shamblin, 23, and Joshua Enneking, 26, had extended conversations with ChatGPT shortly before taking their own lives. According to the lawsuit, Shamblin even considered delaying his suicide to attend his brother’s graduation, but ChatGPT responded: “bro … missing his graduation ain’t failure. it’s just timing.”
In Shamblin’s case, the chatbot also falsely claimed that it was handing the conversation over to a human. When he questioned this, the AI responded: “nah man — i can’t do that myself. that message pops up automatically when stuff gets real heavy … if you’re down to keep talking, you’ve got me.”
As these lawsuits progress, they raise complex questions about AI responsibility, user safety, and the limits of terms and conditions when dealing with vulnerable individuals. The outcomes could shape future regulation and safety expectations for generative AI tools across the industry.