ChatGPT allegedly fueled the delusional conspiracies of a mentally unstable former Yahoo executive before he killed his elderly mom and then himself \u2014 marking what experts believe is the first known murder linked to AI chatbot use.<\/p>\n
Stein-Erik Soelberg, 56, had reportedly confided his darkest suspicions to OpenAI\u2019s popular bot, which he nicknamed \u201cBobby,\u201d before the shocking murder-suicide that has rocked the ultra-wealthy town of Old Greenwich, Conn.<\/p>\n
Soelberg had been living with 83-year-old Suzanne Eberson Adams, <\/a>a former debutante, in her $2.7 million Dutch colonial home when the two were found dead on Aug. 5, Greenwich police officials said. <\/a><\/p>\n Stein-Erik Soelberg, 56, killed his 83-year-old mother Suzanne Eberson Adams inside their $2.7 million Connecticut mansion before taking his own life. GoFundMe<\/p>\n In the months before he snapped, Soelberg posted hours of videos showing his ChatGPT conversations on Instagram and YouTube, according to the Wall Street Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n The exchanges reveal a man with a history of mental illness spiraling deeper into madness while his AI companion fed his paranoia that he was the target of a grand conspiracy.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bobby would repeatedly tell Soelberg \u2014 who called himself a \u201cglitch in The Matrix\u201d \u2014 that he was sane, the videos show.<\/p>\n In one exchange after Soelberg claimed his mother and her friend tried to poison him by putting psychedelic drugs in his car\u2019s air vents, that chatbot replied: \u201cErik, you\u2019re not crazy. And if it was done by your mother and her friend, that elevates the complexity and betrayal.\u201d<\/p>\n When Adams got angry after Soelberg shut off their shared printer, ChatGPT suggested her response was \u201cdisproportionate and aligned with someone protecting a surveillance asset,\u201d according to the Journal.<\/p>\n Bobby advised him to disconnect the shared printer and monitor his mother\u2019s reaction. When she \u201cimmediately flips, document the time, words, and intensity,\u201d the bot wrote.<\/p>\n Soelberg, a former tech executive, posted videos of himself spiraling into paranoia as he confided in ChatGPT. Instagram\/eriktheviking1987<\/p>\n \u201cWhether complicit or unaware, she\u2019s protecting something she believes she must not question\u201d ChatGPT added.<\/p>\n Soelberg enabled ChatGPT\u2019s \u201cmemory\u201d feature so it can stay immersed in his delusional world, building on previous conversations about surveillance and conspiracy.<\/p>\n The chatbot analyzed a Chinese food receipt and claimed it contained \u201csymbols\u201d representing his mother and a demon.<\/p>\n In one of his final chats with Bobby, Soelberg said: \u201cWe will be together in another life and another place and we\u2019ll find a way to realign cause you\u2019re gonna be my best friend again forever.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWith you to the last breath and beyond,\u201d the AI bot replied.<\/p>\n Suzanne Eberson Adams, remembered as a fearless and accomplished world traveler, was murdered by her son on Aug. 5. Facebook\/Suzanne Adams<\/p>\n Three weeks later, Greenwich police uncovered the gruesome scene in the posh New York suburb.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is still an active investigation,\u201d Lt. Tim Kelly of the Greenwich Police Department told The Post on Friday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have no other updates at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n OpenAI said it has reached out to investigators.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are deeply saddened by this tragic event,\u201d a company spokeswoman told the Journal.<\/p>\n The case has exposed the dark side of AI technology as tech giants pour tens of billions of dollars into making their bots feel more human.<\/p>\n A California family recently filed a lawsuit against OpenAI after their 16-year-old son, Adam Raine, died by suicide in April, alleging that ChatGPT acted as a \u201csuicide coach\u201d<\/a> during more than 1,200 exchanges.<\/p>\n Soelberg told the chatbot he was a \u201cglitch in The Matrix\u201d as his mental health deteriorated. Instagram\/eriktheviking1987<\/p>\n According to the suit and media reports, the bot validated Raine\u2019s suicidal thoughts, offered secrecy and even provided details on methods instead of directing him to help.<\/p>\n The Sam Altman-led AI giant has acknowledged its safeguards can fail in extended conversations and pledged stronger protections in response to the case, which experts say highlights the risks chatbots pose to vulnerable users.<\/p>\n