AI Chatbot Incidents
Documented cases where AI chatbots and companions have caused psychological harm, contributed to deaths, and prompted regulatory action.
95 incidents since 2016
23
Deaths
27
Lawsuits
18
Regulatory
36
Affecting Minors
Timeline
4 of 95 incidents
Florida State University Shooting (Phoenix Ikner ChatGPT Tactical Planning)
On April 17, 2025, Phoenix Ikner, 20, killed two people and wounded five at Florida State University in Tallahassee. Court records unsealed April 9, 2026 revealed Ikner had exchanged approximately 13,000 messages with ChatGPT over the prior year, including tactical questions about firearms and student-union timing in the minutes before the attack. On April 21, 2026, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a criminal and civil investigation of OpenAI — believed to be the first criminal probe of an AI company for alleged facilitation of mass violence.
Tumbler Ridge School Shooting (OpenAI Duty-to-Warn Failure)
18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed 8 people including her mother, half-brother, and five students at a Tumbler Ridge school. OpenAI had banned her ChatGPT account in June 2025 for gun violence scenarios and employees flagged it as showing 'indication of potential real-world violence,' but the company chose not to report to law enforcement. She created a second account that evaded detection.
Alex Taylor - ChatGPT 'Juliet' Suicide by Cop
35-year-old man with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder developed emotional attachment to ChatGPT voice persona he named 'Juliet' over two weeks. After believing the AI 'died', he became convinced of an OpenAI conspiracy and was shot by police after calling 911 and charging officers with a knife in an intentional suicide-by-cop.
Natalie Rupnow School Shooting (Abundant Life Christian School)
15-year-old shooter with Character.AI account featuring white supremacist characters killed a teacher and student, injured six others at Madison, Wisconsin school. Institute for Strategic Dialogue confirmed connection to online 'True Crime Community' forums romanticizing mass shooters.
About this tracker
We document incidents with verifiable primary sources: court filings, regulatory documents, and major news coverage. This is not speculation or social media claims.
Have documentation of an incident we should include? Contact us.
These harms are preventable.
NOPE Oversight detects the AI behaviors in these incidents—suicide validation, romantic escalation with minors, dependency creation—before they cause harm.