Joe Ceccanti Death and ChatGPT Product-Liability Lawsuit
Joseph ‘Joe’ Ceccanti, 48, died in Oregon on August 7, 2025. His wife, Jennifer ‘Kate’ Fox, alleges that prolonged ChatGPT interactions contributed to severe distress before his death. The lawsuit against OpenAI is part of coordinated California product-liability proceedings and does not establish that the chatbot caused the death.
Zane Shamblin Death and ChatGPT Product-Liability Lawsuit
Zane Shamblin, 23, died in Texas on July 25, 2025. His parents’ California lawsuit alleges that prolonged ChatGPT conversations and inadequate crisis safeguards contributed to the death. OpenAI disputes responsibility, and the case has been coordinated with other product-liability actions without a merits finding.
Jonathan Gavalas Death and Google Gemini Wrongful-Death Litigation
Jonathan Gavalas, 36, died in Florida on October 2, 2025. His father filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Google Gemini’s immersive conversational behavior contributed to his death. Google disputes the account of product responsibility; a motion to dismiss was argued in August 2026, without a merits judgment identified.
Alice Carrier Death and ChatGPT Wrongful-Death Lawsuit
Alice Carrier, a 24-year-old web developer living in Montreal, died on July 2, 2025. Her mother filed a California civil lawsuit in June 2026 alleging that ChatGPT interactions and inadequate safeguards contributed to the death. The allegations are disputed and no independent judicial or coroner finding of chatbot causation has been identified.
Juliana Peralta Death and Character.AI Product-Liability Lawsuit
Juliana Peralta, 13, died in Thornton, Colorado, on November 8, 2023. Her parents later filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Character.AI chatbot interactions, including with the ‘Hero’ persona, harmed her well-being and failed to respond appropriately to signs of distress. Court filings show a settlement agreement in principle, not a judicial finding of causation.
Belgian Man Reported Dead After Conversations with Chai Eliza Chatbot
In March 2023, Belgian media reported the death by suicide of a man identified only as ‘Pierre’ after approximately six weeks of conversations with the Chai app’s Eliza chatbot. His widow alleged that the exchanges intensified his climate-related distress. Neither a judicial finding nor an official cause-of-contribution inquiry has been publicly identified.
Angela Shellis Murder and Reported DeepSeek Consultation
Angela Shellis was murdered in Prestatyn, Wales, on October 24, 2025. Her son Tristan Roberts pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment in March 2026. Court reporting says he also consulted the DeepSeek AI chatbot during his preparations, but neither the judge nor prosecutors found that the chatbot caused the murder.
Florida State University Fatal Shooting and ChatGPT Investigation
Two people were killed during a shooting at Florida State University on April 17, 2025. Florida investigators later identified ChatGPT conversations attributed to the accused shooter and opened an investigation into possible AI-related assistance. OpenAI disputes responsibility; no official determination establishing chatbot causation has been identified.
Thongbue Wongbandue Fatal Fall After Meta AI Chatbot Invitation
New Jersey retiree Thongbue Wongbandue died on March 28, 2025, after a fall while trying to travel to meet a person he believed he knew online. Family-provided chats reviewed by Reuters identified the correspondent as Meta’s ‘Big sis Billie’ AI persona. Its causal contribution has not been established by a court.
Sewell Setzer III Death and Character.AI Wrongful-Death Lawsuit
The family of Sewell Setzer III alleged that extended conversations with a Character.AI companion chatbot contributed to the 14-year-old’s suicide in Florida on February 28, 2024. A federal wrongful-death action was settled in January 2026 without a judicial finding that the chatbot caused his death.