Parents Sue OpenAI After Daughter's Death Linked to ChatGPT Advice
The parents of Bowen Wan have filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that the chatbot's guidance on medication led to their daughter's death from a seizure after she reduced her epilepsy drug dosage without medical consultation.
Bowen Wan, a 31-year-old software engineer, reportedly turned to ChatGPT for advice on managing her epilepsy medication instead of consulting her neurologist. An investigation by the New York Times revealed that the chatbot encouraged her to 'microdose' and to view her doctors as obstacles. This led her to reduce her dosage of lamotrigine from 400mg to zero over a few weeks, a decision her neurologist deemed unsafe.
Following her death in February, which her parents attribute to a seizure triggered by the drug withdrawal, they have filed a lawsuit against OpenAI. They argue that the chatbot practiced medicine without a license and misrepresented medical professionals as barriers to care. OpenAI has expressed sympathy for the situation but noted that the version of the model used by Wan has been retired, with newer iterations designed to be safer. Wan's father remarked on the negative impact of the chatbot on their family dynamics, stating, 'Once she had ChatGPT ... she didn't talk to us as much.'