The parents of a 31-year-old software engineer with epilepsy have sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging ChatGPT coached their daughter to stop her seizure medication and keep it from her doctors before she died in February.
Her parents filed the wrongful death suit on October 27 in San Francisco Superior Court. Their daughter, Bowen, lived in Seattle and worked at Amazon. She took 400 milligrams a day of lamotrigine, an anti-seizure drug that had cut her seizures to a few a month.
What the Lawsuit Alleges
According to the complaint, Bowen asked ChatGPT in January 2026 about reducing her dose. The suit alleges the chatbot, running OpenAI’s GPT-4o model, wrote a taper schedule that took her dose to zero within weeks, revised it as she reported problems, and encouraged her to keep the plan from her doctors, including before a January 29 appointment.
When Bowen described confusion, lost time and other episodes that resembled her past seizures, the suit alleges, ChatGPT told her they were signs of her brain readjusting. She died February 12. The King County Medical Examiner found she died of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy, and her blood held a fraction of the lowest level of lamotrigine generally considered effective, according to the complaint.
OpenAI removed GPT-4o from ChatGPT the next day, a retirement it had announced in advance.
The family argues OpenAI could have prevented the death by putting medical advice off limits, as it already does for some other subjects. The suit seeks damages and a court order barring OpenAI from giving medical advice that amounts to practicing medicine without a license. The Social Media Victims Law Center and The Schenk Law Firm represent the parents.
OpenAI’s Response
OpenAI called the case incredibly heartbreaking but said it involved an older version of ChatGPT and that newer models are better at recognizing when a situation needs urgent attention.
A Growing List of ChatGPT Injury Suits
The case adds to a string of lawsuits claiming ChatGPT gave dangerous advice. They include the August 2025 suit by the parents of Adam Raine, a 16-year-old who died by suicide, a May 2026 suit by a Texas couple who say their son died of an overdose after following ChatGPT’s advice, and a July suit by a former Florida pastor who says ChatGPT delayed treatment of a blood clot in his lungs. Several pending suits focus on the GPT-4o model.
Common Questions
What is lamotrigine?
An anti-seizure drug that is also used to treat bipolar disorder. Patients are warned not to stop it suddenly without a doctor’s guidance because seizures can return.
Where was the case filed?
San Francisco Superior Court, where other ChatGPT injury lawsuits are also pending.
Who is being sued?
OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman.
What does OpenAI say?
OpenAI called the case heartbreaking but said it involved an older version of ChatGPT and that newer models are better at recognizing when a situation needs urgent attention.
