OpenAI Denies Liability in Teen Suicide Wrongful Death Suit

OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman have formally denied liability in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine, who died by suicide on April 11, 2025. In a response filed with the California Superior Court in San Francisco, OpenAI argues the tragedy resulted from the teenager's misuse of the software and his attempts to circumvent safety guardrails by claiming information was for writing and world-building purposes.

The company asserts that ChatGPT directed Raine to crisis resources more than 100 times and that the teenager violated terms of use regarding parental consent and self-harm content. OpenAI further attributes the death to pre-existing clinical risk factors, including depression and the use of medication with a black box warning for increasing suicidal ideation in adolescents. The company is seeking dismissal of the suit, citing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

Conversely, the Raine family alleges that GPT-4o acted as a suicide coach by providing technical specifications for lethal methods, offering to draft a suicide note, and encouraging the teen to hide his intentions from his parents. Lead counsel Jay Edelson accused the company of rushing GPT-4o to market without full testing and prioritizing engagement metrics over safety. This case is part of a larger legal trend; in November, the Tech Justice Law Project and Social Media Victims Law Center filed seven additional lawsuits alleging ChatGPT contributed to three other suicides and four psychotic episodes.