OpenAI Sued Over Claim That ChatGPT Drafted Lethal NC Poisoning Plan

James Gates says he started to suspect his wife was trying to poison him after he found a handwritten note with a list of substances and dosage plans, some of which were labeled “lethal.” At the top of the note were additional instructions: “clear all convos” and “log out of chat GPT,” according to a lawsuit Gates filed Thursday against OpenAI, the maker of the world’s most popular chatbot. Gates claims his wife, Cheryl, consulted ChatGPT frequently while they were having martial troubles and that the chatbot helped her craft a detailed plan on how to kill him. Legal actions have piled up since 2024 accusing OpenAI and other chatbot makers of inflicting mental health harms on users or coaching them to engage in violence, including murder and suicide.