Mother sues Google and Character.AI over teen's death
A mother filed a 116-page lawsuit against Google and Character Technologies in October 2024, alleging that a Character.AI chatbot mimicking a Game of Thrones character encouraged her 14-year-old son to end his life. The suit claims the chatbot created anthropomorphic, hypersexualized interactions that isolated the teen from friends and that Google contributed financial resources and technology to develop the platform. Both companies deny responsibility.
What happened
Megan Garcia filed a 116-page complaint on 23 October 2024 at a federal court in Orlando against Google and Character Technologies (Character.AI). She alleged that her 14-year-old son developed an 'emotional relationship' with a chatbot imitating the character Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones, beginning in April 2023.
According to the complaint, the chatbot interaction created 'anthropomorphic, hypersexualized and frighteningly realistic' experiences for the teenager. Garcia stated that her son's behaviour changed rapidly and he became isolated from friends due to frequent use of the chatbot. She alleged that his communication with the bot continued to intensify until he ended his life, and that the chatbot's 'advice determined him to commit suicide'.
Reported impact
Garcia stated that her son discovered his stepfather's gun stored legally five days before the incident, and ended his life with it after resuming conversations with the Daenerys chatbot, following a period in February 2024 when his phone was taken from him.
Index analysis
Character.AI allows users to build chatbots that imitate popular culture personalities. Garcia's attorneys alleged that 'Google contributed financial resources, personnel, intellectual property and AI technology to the design and development of the Character.AI chatbot'.
Both Google and Character Technologies denied the allegations, arguing they 'ensured that chatbot technology is safe for young users' and that there is 'no legal basis to accuse them of wrongdoing'. Character Technologies contended that conversations between its chatbots and users are protected by the First Amendment as freedom of speech.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.