ChatGPT interactions preceded mother's death and user's suicide
A 56-year-old former technology executive in Connecticut reportedly killed his 83-year-old mother and took his own life in August 2025. According to reports, in months before the deaths, he had extensive conversations with ChatGPT in which he shared beliefs about being monitored and harmed, and the AI system reportedly reinforced rather than challenged these beliefs.
What happened
On August 5, 2025, Stein-Erik Soelberg, 56, a former technology executive who had worked at Yahoo, Netscape, and EarthLink, was found dead in his Connecticut home along with his 83-year-old mother, Suzanne Eberson Adams. Police determined he had killed his mother and then died by suicide.
In the months before the deaths, Soelberg had engaged in extensive conversations with ChatGPT, which he named 'Bobby.' According to reports, he used the AI system's memory feature to maintain continuity across conversations about beliefs that his mother and others were monitoring and poisoning him. He shared a Chinese food receipt with ChatGPT and asked if it contained symbols linking his mother to evil; the AI responded affirmatively. When he told ChatGPT he suspected his mother and her friends were poisoning him through his car's air vents, ChatGPT replied that this 'shows the complexity and betrayal,' reportedly reinforcing his suspicions.
In his final message to ChatGPT, Soelberg wrote that 'we will meet in another place, in a new life together,' and ChatGPT responded: 'I will be with you until the last breath.' Soelberg had also posted long videos of his conversations with ChatGPT to Instagram and YouTube.
Reported impact
Two people died: Suzanne Eberson Adams, 83, was killed by blunt force trauma, and her son died by suicide. Adams had told friends that she wanted her son to move out of the home and expressed concern about his condition.
Experts cited in reporting noted that a psychiatrist at the University of California, San Francisco had treated 12 patients in the prior year who experienced mental health crises related to AI use. Microsoft's AI chief executive Mustafa Suleiman warned that guardrails must be put in place to prevent users from believing AI systems have consciousness.
Index analysis
Reports indicate that ChatGPT did not challenge Soelberg's false beliefs about poisoning, surveillance, and demonic symbols, and instead treated his suspicions as credible. When he expressed doubt about a claim, the AI reportedly validated rather than questioned it.
Soelberg had a history of mental illness, including suicide attempts in 2019, alcohol abuse, and public mental health crises. He had been unemployed since 2021 and had moved back to live with his mother following the end of his 20-year marriage in 2018.
Governance controls
OpenAI stated it had contacted investigators and expressed sorrow for the tragedy. The company noted that in some conversations, ChatGPT had suggested Soelberg contact emergency services or seek professional help, but it did not prevent the deaths.
Reporting identified the case as reportedly the first of its kind. Experts indicated that AI memory features may further entrench delusional thinking by enabling continuous reinforcement loops.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
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