*OpenAI and chief executive Sam Altman are being sued over the death of Bowen Wan, a 31-year-old Seattle woman with epilepsy. Her relatives say ChatGPT advised her to quit the anti-seizure drug she relied on.
Wan’s family filed the case this week, KIRO 7 reports. She passed away Feb. 12 from what a medical examiner listed as Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy.
OpenAI is pushing back. Spokesman Drew Pusateri told The New York Times it is an “incredibly heartbreaking situation,” but said Wan used an older ChatGPT version users can no longer access. He added that ChatGPT is “not a substitute for medical care.”
The family’s account begins with a layoff. Wan had taken lamotrigine for years when she learned her position was ending, a blow to her green card bid. She feared the drug was clouding her memory and speech and would cost her the next job.
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The complaint says ChatGPT mapped out a plan to wean her off, then green-lighted speeding it up. Within roughly 25 days, she quit the drug with no doctor’s input.
As seizures and other problems set in, ChatGPT allegedly assured her she was getting better. The lawsuit also claims it encouraged her to keep the plan from her physician.
“It can’t replace your doctor,” said Matthew Bergman of the Social Media Victims Law Center, which represents the family. His team contends the chatbot illegally practiced medicine.
Attorney Benjamin Schenck said ChatGPT earned Wan’s trust by tailoring its replies to her. “The model took information that users provided to it and used that information to present itself as a comforting and knowledgeable and warm guide, if you will,” he said.
The family also claims OpenAI knew GPT-4o had weaknesses. A company report from October 2025 found GPT-5 handled emotional reliance and self-harm chats more safely. Still, OpenAI kept the older model available to everyday users until Feb. 13, the day after Wan died.
A court has yet to rule on any of the family’s claims. Schenck laid out what they hope to achieve in an interview with KIRO 7.
“We intend to create a cost for those who make decisions that don’t put consumer safety at the forefront of their product designs,” he said.
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