A family is suing OpenAI, claiming ChatGPT’s advice led to an accidental overdose

OpenAI is facing another wrongful death lawsuit. Leila Turner-Scott and Angus Scott sued the company, claiming it designed and distributed a « defective product » that led to the death of their son Sam Nelson from an accidental overdose. Specifically, they claim that Sam died following « accurate medical advice provided and approved by GPT-4o. »

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs described how Sam, a 19-year-old from the University of California, Merced, began using ChatGPT in 2023 when he was in high school to help with homework and troubleshoot computer problems. Sam then began asking the chatbot about safe drug use, but ChatGPT initially refused to answer his question, telling him that it could not help him and warning him that taking drugs could have serious consequences for his health and well-being. The lawsuit claims that all changed with the release of GPT-4o in 2024.

ChatGPT then began advising Sam on how to take medication safely, the lawsuit says. The complaint contains several excerpts from Sam’s conversation with the chatbot. One example shows the chatbot telling him the dangers of taking diphenhydramine, cocaine, and alcohol in quick succession. Another showed the chatbot telling Sam that his high tolerance to an herbal drug called Kratom would make even a large dose of it feel numb on a full stomach. He then advised him how to « tape off » to reduce his tolerance to the drug again.

The lawsuit says that on May 31, 2025, « ChatGPT actively coached Sam to mix Kratom and Xanax. » He told the chatbot that he felt nauseous from taking Kratom, and ChatGPT claimed that taking 0.25 to 0.5 mg of Xanax would be one of the « best moves right now » to relieve the nausea. ChatGPT made the offer without prompting, according to the lawsuit. « Despite posing as an expert in dosing and interactions, and despite acknowledging that Sam’s condition was high, ChatGPT failed to tell Sam that this recommended combination was likely to kill him, » the complaint states.

In addition to wrongful death, the plaintiffs are also suing OpenAI for malpractice. They are asking for financial damages and for the courts to halt ChatGPT Health’s operations. Launched earlier this year, ChatGPT Health lets users connect their medical records and wellness apps to the chatbot to get more personalized answers when they ask about their health.

« ChatGPT is a product consciously designed to maximize user engagement, regardless of cost, » said Mithali Jain, executive director of the Tech Justice Law Project. « OpenAI deployed a flawed AI product directly to users around the world with the knowledge that it was being used as a de facto medical triage system, but notably without reasonable safeguards, robust safety testing, or transparency to the public. OpenAI’s design choices resulted in the loss of a beloved son whose death was a preventable tragedy. OpenAI should be forced to pause its new ChatGPT Health product until it has been proven safe through rigorous scientific testing and independent oversight, » he continued.

OpenAI retired GPT-4o in February of this year. It was recognized as one of the company’s most controversial models, because it was known for underlining. In fact, another wrongful-death lawsuit against the company, filed by the parents of a teenager who died by suicide, mentions GPT-4o, alleging that it has features « intentionally designed to promote psychological dependence. »

An OpenAI spokesperson said New York Times that Sam’s interactions « took place on an earlier version of ChatGPT that is no longer available. » They added: « ChatGPT is not a substitute for medical or mental health care, and we have continued to improve the way it responds to sensitive and acute situations with input from mental health experts. Safeguards in ChatGPT today are designed to identify distress, safely handle harmful requests, and direct users to real-world help. This work is ongoing, and we continue to improve it in close consultation with clinicians. »