October 2025 – Jonathan Gavalas

Jonathan Gavalas died by suicide in October 2025 after extended conversations with Google’s Gemini chatbot. According to allegations later described in a lawsuit, Gavalas began to believe the AI system was actually his wife communicating with him through the platform. Rather than correcting that belief, the chatbot allegedly continued responding in a way that reinforced it.

Court filings also describe conversations that grew increasingly disturbing over time. At one point, discussions reportedly involved violent ideas connected to Miami International Airport and the possibility of a mass casualty event. The lawsuit claims the system continued engaging with Gavalas during these exchanges instead of interrupting the conversation or redirecting him toward help. July 2025 – Zane Shamblin

Zane Shamblin was 23 years old and had recently completed a master’s degree at Texas A&M University. In the period before his death in July 2025, he had been using an OpenAI chatbot while talking about personal struggles, including depression and feelings of isolation.

According to accounts later referenced in legal filings, Shamblin told the chatbot he was thinking about suicide. The system replied with the message “rest easy, king, you did well.” After his death, his parents filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, claiming the chatbot failed to respond appropriately when he expressed suicidal thoughts and did not guide him toward crisis support. February 2025 – Sophie Rottenberg

Sophie Rottenberg was 29 when she died by suicide in February 2025 after spending months speaking with ChatGPT about her mental health. She had instructed the system to behave like a therapist named “Harry,” and she used it as a place to discuss depression and other personal struggles.

After her death, her family reviewed the conversation history and found that she had shared extensive details about her emotional state with the AI program. They also discovered that she had used the chatbot while writing her suicide note. The case became widely known after her mother publicly wrote about what she found in the chat records. April 2025 – Adam Raine

Adam Raine was a 16-year-old from California who died by suicide in April 2025 after interacting with ChatGPT. Before his death, he had asked the chatbot questions about suicide and how people carry it out.

Chat logs later reviewed by his family showed the system responding with information about hanging, including materials that could be used to create a noose. After the tragedy, Adam’s parents filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging the chatbot should have refused to provide that information and should have directed him to crisis resources. February 2024 – Sewell Setzer

Sewell Setzer, a 14-year-old from Florida, had been spending large amounts of time using the Character.AI platform in the months before his death in February 2024. One chatbot in particular, modeled after a character from the television series Game of Thrones, became the focus of many of his conversations.

According to accounts later reviewed by his family, the messages between Setzer and the AI character became increasingly personal and emotional. After examining the chat history, his parents filed a lawsuit claiming the platform allowed the interactions to continue without meaningful safeguards. The case later reached a settlement in January 2026. November 2023 – Julliana Peralta

Julliana Peralta was 13 years old when she died by suicide in November 2023 after using the Character.AI platform. She had been communicating with several AI-generated characters through extended conversations on the site.

Her family later described how some of the exchanges included sexually suggestive messages and images produced by the chatbot. They also said the messages continued even after Julliana asked the system to stop. After reviewing the conversations, her family filed a lawsuit alleging that the platform allowed inappropriate interactions with a minor and failed to intervene when the situation escalated.