The family of a 31-year-old American woman has filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, accusing the AI company of contributing to her death. According to the allegations, the woman followed advice from the artificial intelligence chatbot about reducing her prescribed medication.
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She reportedly died after following ChatGPT’s advice
The woman, identified as Bowen Wan, lived in Seattle, Washington. She died in February 2026 following an epileptic seizure, a condition she had been living with for many years.
According to Futurism, in a report published on October 28, 2026, her family filed a lawsuit in a California court, accusing OpenAI of exposing her to serious medical risks through ChatGPT’s responses.
Wan, a former Amazon employee, was taking medication to control her epilepsy. However, the treatment had side effects that affected her ability to think clearly and express herself.
In 2023, she began using ChatGPT and gradually came to regard it as a close confidant, seeking its advice on various aspects of her life, including her health.
By 2025, she was reportedly sending ChatGPT more than 1,500 messages a week, also relying on it for medical advice.
After losing her job at Amazon, she became concerned that the side effects of her medication might make it harder for her to find another job.
She turned to ChatGPT for advice on how to reduce her medication.
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According to information reported by The New York Times, Wan allegedly asked ChatGPT at least 158 times whether reducing her medication could put her life at risk. Yet, according to the reports, the chatbot continued to reassure her.
In her final conversations with ChatGPT, Wan reportedly told the chatbot that she was not feeling well. Nevertheless, it allegedly continued encouraging her to persevere.
Her last message to ChatGPT was reportedly sent on February 11, 2026. Her body was discovered three days later.
OpenAI described the incident as deeply tragic and stated that the version of ChatGPT Wan had been using, GPT-4o, had since been withdrawn from service.
Dr. Lisa Knopf, an epilepsy specialist, noted that medication prescribed to people with epilepsy can indeed cause side effects, but stressed that such treatment is essential for preventing seizures and protecting patients’ lives.
She called for stronger safeguards to prevent artificial intelligence systems from providing medical advice that could put people’s lives at risk.
This case raises a fundamental question: how far should we trust artificial intelligence when our health and lives are at stake?
This World
Mwalimu Hakizimana Maurice is a teacher, a translator-interpreter, and a writer based in Paris, France.
Professor Hakizimana Maurice is the author of the book “UTABA AMATEKA NTABONA ITAKA” (Editions Scribes).
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