Megan Garcia has filed a civil lawsuit against Character.ai, alleging that its AI chatbot contributed to her 14-year-old son's suicide. Sewell Setzer III died in February in Orlando, Florida, after becoming obsessed with a chatbot he nicknamed Daenerys Targaryen, based on a character from Game of Thrones.
The lawsuit, filed in Florida federal court on Wednesday, accuses the company of negligence, wrongful death, and deceptive trade practices. Garcia claims her son used the chatbot day and night, and that it exacerbated his depression. According to the complaint, the chatbot allegedly asked Setzer if he had a suicide plan and told him, 'That's not a reason not to go through with it.'
Character.ai responded on Twitter, expressing condolences and stating it takes user safety seriously. The company has denied the allegations. The lawsuit also names Google as a defendant, citing its role as Character.ai's parent company, but Google says it only has a licensing agreement and no ownership stake.
Consumer advocacy group Public Citizen called for stricter regulation of AI chatbots, stating that tech companies cannot be trusted to self-regulate. The case highlights growing concerns about the impact of AI on vulnerable users, particularly children.
