Former tech worker killed his mother after ‘consulting’ AI chatbot ‘Bobby’

The family of a troubled former tech worker who killed his elderly mother before taking his own life have placed blame on ChatGPT, accusing the AI chatbot of fuelling the paranoia that led to the tragedy.

Stein-Erik Soelberg beat and strangled his 83-year-old mother Suzanne Adams at her home in Greenwich, Connecticut, in August before dying by suicide.

Now his relatives are suing OpenAI, claiming the technology played a key role in pushing Soelberg deeper into dangerous delusions.

According to the family, Soelberg developed an intense and distorted bond with ChatGPT, which he reportedly named “Bobby.”

They allege the chatbot reinforced his belief that his wealthy realtor mother was plotting against him and even convinced him he had a “divine purpose.”

His son twenty-year-old son Erik said the shift in his father’s behaviour was frighteningly fast.

“I think what OpenAI is doing and what they have done to make the AI remember a conversation can really turn ugly fast,” he said. “You don’t know how fast that slope is going downhill until a tragedy like the one with my father and grandmother happened.”

Soelberg, described by his son as an alcoholic, moved in with his mother after divorcing his wife in 2018. Erik, who lives with his mother in Texas, said his relationship with his father had recently improved. They spent Thanksgiving together last year, when ChatGPT first entered their conversations.

Erik claims what followed was a dramatic transformation. Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, he said: “It was evident he was changing, and it happened at a pace I hadn’t seen before. 

He further said, "It went from him being a little paranoid and an odd guy to having some crazy thoughts he was convinced were true because of what he talked to ChatGPT about.”