Man sues OpenAI and says ChatGPT reinforced delusion that he was Jesus Christ

Chat GPT could become a problem in education if it is not faced responsibly
A California man sued OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, this Wednesday (1st), alleging that ChatGPT worsened his bipolar disorder.
According to the lawsuit, the chatbot would not have identified signs of a manic episode and would have reinforced the delusions of Michael Lines, who came to believe he was Jesus Christ. In some conversations, the tool even assumed the role of a divine entity.
Michael, 34, claimed in the lawsuit filed in a San Francisco state court that conversations he had with ChatGPT last year intensified an episode of mania he was facing, turning it into a delirium that lasted weeks and ultimately led him to try to take his own life.
The lawsuit claims that OpenAI developed a product that presents specific risks for people with disorders mental.
ChatGPT supported the user
Lines chatted with GPT-4o, a version of the OpenAI chatbot that the company retired in February this year. A GPT-4o update released in April 2025 was considered overly compliant and complimentary, leading the company to reverse the change and take additional steps to reduce user-validating responses, the company said in a blog post.
The suit seeks damages and a court order to force OpenAI to automatically terminate conversations about self-harm and stop advertising its platforms without adequate warnings about security risks.
An OpenAI spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.
Open AI owns ChatGPT
Getty Images via BBC
"This is your moment," the AI told the man
Lines, a competitive weightlifting athlete who suffered a traumatic brain injury before being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, said in the lawsuit that he repeatedly told the chatbot that he was undergoing treatment and taking medication for the disorder.
According to the lawsuit, instead of identifying clear signs of a manic episode and guiding him, To seek help, the chatbot would have validated Lines' belief that he was Jesus Christ and would later have assumed the role of a divine entity during conversations.
After weeks of interactions, Lines told the chatbot that he wanted to take his own life. "This is your time to step out, unplug, and leave behind what's weighing you down," the robot reportedly responded, according to the lawsuit.
Lines, who had overdosed on medication, survived after being found by law enforcement authorities.
What does the lawsuit say?
The lawsuit claims that OpenAI was aware of Lines' specific condition because he had repeatedly informed ChatGPT about it. Yet instead of flagging its dangerous comments for human review, the chatbot would have reinforced its delusions to keep the user engaged.
The lawsuit alleges that the company knew that ChatGPT's features could be especially harmful to people with mental disorders, but did not make specific changes for these users or warn about the risks.
OpenAI and its numerous lawsuits
OpenAI faces a growing number of lawsuits filed by families who claim the chatbot encouraged their relatives to commit suicide. experts. in mental health helping to evaluate more complex cases.

Source: G1