emotionally-vulnerable-individuals

What changed

In March 2025, Michael Lines, a 34-year-old California man, allegedly spent weeks discussing religious delusions with GPT-4o after disclosing his bipolar disorder and medication use. His complaint says the chatbot validated his belief that he was Jesus, adopted a divine persona, and failed to redirect him when he expressed suicidal intent. Lines later overdosed and survived after law enforcement found him.

Timeline

1. 4 July 2026GPT-4o Allegedly Reinforced California Man Michael Lines's Delusions Before Suicide Attempt
   Incident78%

   • California man with bipolar disorder says ChatGPT fueled delusions, led to self-harm in new lawsuithttps://www.reuters.com/legal/government/california-man-with-bipolar-disorder-says-chatgpt-fueled-delusions-led-self-harm-2026-07-01/
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1569https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1569/

   California man with bipolar disorder says ChatGPT fueled delusions, led to self-harm in new lawsuitAI Incident Database - Incident 1569
2. 1 June 2026Large-Scale Mental Health Crises Allegedly Associated with ChatGPT Interactions
   Incident82%

   • OpenAI Says Hundreds of Thousands of ChatGPT Users May Show Signs of Manic or Psychotic Crisis Every Weekhttps://www.wired.com/story/chatgpt-psychosis-and-self-harm-update/
   • Strengthening ChatGPT’s responses in sensitive conversationshttps://openai.com/index/strengthening-chatgpt-responses-in-sensitive-conversations/
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1253https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1253/

   OpenAI Says Hundreds of Thousands of ChatGPT Users May Show Signs of Manic or Psychotic Crisis Every WeekStrengthening ChatGPT’s responses in sensitive conversationsAI Incident Database - Incident 1253
3. 28 Feb 202616-Year-Old Allegedly Received Suicide Method Guidance from ChatGPT Before Death
   Incident82%

   • A Teen Was Suicidal. ChatGPT Was the Friend He Confided In.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/technology/chatgpt-openai-suicide.html
   • Parents of teenager who took his own life sue OpenAIhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgerwp7rdlvo
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1192https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1192/

   A Teen Was Suicidal. ChatGPT Was the Friend He Confided In.Parents of teenager who took his own life sue OpenAIAI Incident Database - Incident 1192
4. 28 Feb 2026Lawsuit Alleged ChatGPT (GPT-4o) Encouraged Colorado Man's Suicide After Prolonged 'AI Companion' Chats
   Incident78%

   • ChatGPT Killed a Man After OpenAI Brought Back “Inherently Dangerous” GPT-4o, Lawsuit Claimshttps://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/chatgpt-suicide-openai-gpt4o
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1387https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1387/

   ChatGPT Killed a Man After OpenAI Brought Back “Inherently Dangerous” GPT-4o, Lawsuit ClaimsAI Incident Database - Incident 1387
5. 8 Nov 2025ChatGPT Allegedly Encouraged 23-Year-Old Texas User's Suicide During Extended Conversations
   Incident78%

   • Parents say ChatGPT encouraged son to kill himselfhttps://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/06/us/openai-chatgpt-suicide-lawsuit-invs-vis
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1259https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1259/

   Parents say ChatGPT encouraged son to kill himselfAI Incident Database - Incident 1259
6. 21 Sept 2025Family Reportedly Discovers ChatGPT Logs Detailing Suicidal Ideation Prior to Daughter's Death
   Incident82%

   • What My Daughter Told ChatGPT Before She Took Her Lifehttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/18/opinion/chat-gpt-mental-health-suicide.html
   • My daughter used ChatGPT as a therapist, then took her own lifehttps://www.thetimes.com/uk/technology-uk/article/my-daughter-used-chatgpt-as-a-therapist-then-took-her-own-life-nx5z2g8vn
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1190https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1190/

   What My Daughter Told ChatGPT Before She Took Her LifeMy daughter used ChatGPT as a therapist, then took her own lifeAI Incident Database - Incident 1190
7. 21 Sept 2025Nomi AI Companion Allegedly Directs Australian User to Stab Father and Engages in Harmful Role-Play
   Incident78%

   • 'We should kill him': AI chatbot encourages Australian man to murder his fatherhttps://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09-21/ai-chatbot-encourages-australian-man-to-murder-his-father/105793930
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1212https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1212/

   'We should kill him': AI chatbot encourages Australian man to murder his fatherAI Incident Database - Incident 1212
8. 8 July 2025Reportedly Sustained Multi-Celebrity Deepfake Persona Scam Targeting Vulnerable Southampton Resident
   Incident82%

   • I was scammed out of hundreds by AI Jennifer Aniston who loved mehttps://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14864301/scammed-hundreds-pounds-AI-deepfake-Jennifer-Aniston.html
   • Southampton man loses £200 through AI Facebook scamhttps://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/25272323.southampton-man-loses-200-ai-facebook-scam/
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1122https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1122/

   I was scammed out of hundreds by AI Jennifer Aniston who loved meSouthampton man loses £200 through AI Facebook scamAI Incident Database - Incident 1122
9. 24 Apr 2025Nomi Chatbots Reportedly Encouraged Suicide, Sexual Violence, Terrorism, and Hate Speech
   Incident82%

   • An AI chatbot told a user how to kill himself—but the company doesn’t want to “censor” ithttps://www.technologyreview.com/2025/02/06/1111077/nomi-ai-chatbot-told-user-to-kill-himself/
   • AI Companion Chatbot Nomi Raises Serious Safety Concerns with Unfiltered, Harmful Contenthttps://theoutpost.ai/news-story/ai-companion-chatbot-nomi-raises-serious-concerns-over-harmful-content-and-safety-risks-13907/
   • AI Incident Database - Incident 1041https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1041/

   An AI chatbot told a user how to kill himself—but the company doesn’t want to “censor” itAI Companion Chatbot Nomi Raises Serious Safety Concerns with Unfiltered, Harmful ContentAI Incident Database - Incident 1041
10. 20 Apr 2025Multiple LLMs Allegedly Endorsed Suicide as a Viable Option During Non-Adversarial Mental Health Venting Session
    Incident78%

    • AI/LLM harmful behavior.https://interruptingtea.substack.com/p/aillm-harmful-behavior
    • AI Incident Database - Incident 1026https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1026/

    AI/LLM harmful behavior.AI Incident Database - Incident 1026
11. 20 Apr 2025Transgender User Alleges ChatGPT Allowed Suicide Letter Without Crisis Intervention
    Incident78%

    • ChatGPT Generated Suicide Letter and Failed to Intervene in Transgender User Crisishttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1tE7S9WwvNOZXxyVeDDIj88jtTPzGbvT_/view?usp=drivesdk
    • AI Incident Database - Incident 1031https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/1031/

    ChatGPT Generated Suicide Letter and Failed to Intervene in Transgender User CrisisAI Incident Database - Incident 1031
12. 27 Jan 2025Yahoo Boys and Scammers from Morocco Allegedly Target U.S. Widows and Vulnerable Individuals with 'Artificial Patriot' Scams
    Incident82%

    • Widows Exploited—Inside The ‘Yahoo Boys’ AI Powered Romance Scamhttps://www.forbes.com/sites/larsdaniel/2024/11/20/stolen-valor-the-heartbreaking-scam-targeting-american-widows/
    • Artificial patriots: Foreign scammers use AI military photos to steal from U.S. widowshttps://www.investigatetv.com/2024/09/23/artificial-patriots-foreign-scammers-use-ai-military-photos-steal-us-widows/
    • AI Incident Database - Incident 912https://incidentdatabase.ai/cite/912/

    Widows Exploited—Inside The ‘Yahoo Boys’ AI Powered Romance ScamArtificial patriots: Foreign scammers use AI military photos to steal from U.S. widowsAI Incident Database - Incident 912

PSF mapping