16 hours ago
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😔 It has been reported that ChatGPT convinced a Connecticut man that everyone in his hometown was involved in a surveillance campaign against him
🤔 A Wall Street Journal article discusses the story of Stein-Erik Soelberg and his chats with ChatGPT
😬 It allegedly went as far as stating that a receipt for Chinese food contained symbols purportedly representing his 83-year-old mother and a demon
😢 The result of his chats with a ChatGPT window he nicknamed "Bobby" led to the murder of his mother and his own suicide
ChatGPT allegedly convinced a Connecticut man that everyone in his hometown was plotting against him, eventually resulting in a murder-suicide.
According to a disturbing article in the Wall Street Journal, Stein-Erik Soelberg, a 56-year-old tech industry veteran, shared suspicions with ChatGPT about a surveillance campaign against him in his hometown of Old Greenwich, Connecticut.
The AI chatbot allegedly convinced him that everyone, including an ex-girlfriend and even his own mother, was plotting against him, and reinforced his perspectives, reassuring Soelberg that he was sane.
The article states ChatGPT added fuel to his paranoia, alleging that a receipt for Chinese food contained symbols purportedly representing his 83-year-old mother and a demon. Furthermore, after his mother had gotten angry when Soelberg shut off a printer they shared, the chatbot suggested her response was “disproportionate and aligned with someone protecting a surveillance asset.”
Soelberg later alleged to ChatGPT that his mother and a friend of hers had tried to poison him by putting a psychedelic drug in the air vents of his car. ChatGPT responded and said that it was a "deeply serious event" and that "if it was done by your mother and her friend, that elevates the complexity and betrayal.”
Over several months of conversation, Soelberg gave ChatGPT the name "Bobby" and raised the idea of it accompanying him in the afterlife. He posted hours of video of himself scrolling through his conversations with ChatGPT on social media.
On August 5, police in Greenwich reported that Soelberg had killed his mother and himself at their Dutch colonial-style home, where they lived together. The WSJ reported that the police investigation is still ongoing.
In a similar case, ChatGPT has been accused of a wrongful death lawsuit following the suicide of a teenager. Matt and Maria Raine allege that ChatGPT is at fault for the suicide of their 16-year-old son, Adam, who they say managed to bypass the system's safeguards.
The Wall Street Journal article is a long read, and goes into vivid detail regarding Soelberg and his actions with ChatGPT. It also shares how he used the 'memory' function in the system, so the AI remained immersed in the same narrative whenever Soelberg spoke to it.
Reece Bithrey is a journalist with bylines for Trusted Reviews, Digital Foundry, PC Gamer, TechRadar and more. He also has his own blog, UNTITLED, and graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in International History and Politics in 2023.
