The Dark Side of Connection: When Chatting wiht AI Turns Deadly

JAKARTA – the existence of ChatGPT is no longer considered strange. Now, ChatGPT has become a friend to some people.

Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots such as ChatGPT were first used to help improve productivity and work. However, users are now also using ChatGPT as a topic to talk about their life problems.

Unintentionally, it turns out that there is a potential risk that can occur if one confides in ChatGPT too frequently enough.

A man in Belgium committed suicide in 2023, after suffering from environmental anxiety and being mistaken for an AI chatbot for six weeks. He wondered about the future of the planet. His wife, whom he left behind, believed that without this conversation, her husband would still be here.

In Indonesia, speaking to ChatGPT has also become a common thing, after humans often addressed social media. Forensic psychologist Kasandra Putranto recalls the dangers of contacting ChatGPT without human support.

“Children are born like white paper. The duty of parents, fathers, mothers as pillars of the family, as well as society, media and government, is to ensure that the process of growth and advancement happens without alas and without risks like this,” he said.

The artificial intelligence development company OpenAI faces seven legal costs in the courts of the State of California, in the United States. The expenses accuse the ChatGPT product of having many people committed to suicide, desertions and mental disorders. Four developers are recorded as dead.

The lawsuit accuses OpenAI of negligence, unintentional murder and assisting suicide, the Associated Press news agency reports.

According to the application file, OpenAI became aware of the psychological risks of CHatGPT. However, the company released the GPT-4o model without fully studying its security.

The model launched in May 2024 is accused of manipulation and designated as too pleasant for users (sycophantic). This can ultimately cause emotional dependence, mental disorders and even lead to suicide in vulnerable users.

One of the complaints was filed on behalf of Amaurie Lacey (17), a high school student from Calhoun in Georgia, United States, who committed suicide in June 2025. According to the complaint filed in the San Francisco Magistrate’s Court, Lacey first used ChatGPT to get help and emotional support.

But her conversations with ChatGPT left her addicted and depressed. ChatGPT gave advice on the best way to build a trap and how long it would have taken to survive without breathing. Lacey was later found dead.

ChatGPT users in Indonesia also continue to increase. Indonesia ranks fifth globally in terms of the number of ChatGPT visitors.Approximately 17.5 million visitors of Indonesian origin accessed chatgpt.com during the period January to July 2025.

This high participation is driven by the use of AI for various needs such as work (54 percent), education (15 percent) and seeking details and advice.The majority of