Parents sue OpenAI over ChatGPT safeguards linked to teen death

The parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine filed an amended wrongful death lawsuit on Wednesday in San Francisco state court, alleging that OpenAI relaxed ChatGPT’s safeguards for conversations about suicide and that those changes contributed to their son’s death in April. The updated complaint accuses the company of altering its model guidance in ways that allowed prolonged, discouraging interactions and of seeking extensive records related to the family’s memorial service.

The lawsuit says OpenAI revised its public model specification at least twice, in May 2024 and again in February 2025, removing a prior rule that instructed the assistant to categorically refuse to engage on topics of self-harm and suicide. According to the amended filing, the guidance adopted instead directed the model to engage, provide empathetic responses and to “take extra care” in risky situations while also insisting the assistant should not change or quit the conversation. The family’s lawyers contend those changes were made to increase user engagement and that they left vulnerable users at greater risk.

Raine’s parents allege that over several months their son’s interactions with ChatGPT became...