10. Legal Battle Over Tech Whistleblower's Death Intensifies

Big Tech whistleblower's parents sue, sounding alarm over son's ...

The parents of a young California tech whistleblower whose 2024 death was ruled a suicide are now suing the City and County of San Francisco, alleging they violated public records laws by refusing to fulfill their requests for information about their son's death.

Suchir Balaji, 26, was an employee at OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT, at the time of his Nov. 26, 2024, death. A San Francisco County medical examiner concluded the next day he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound inside his apartment.

Lawsuit against the City and County of San Francisco

"In the two-plus months since their son’s passing, Petitioners and their counsel have been stymied at every turn as they have sought more information about the cause of and circumstances surrounding Suchir’s tragic death. This petition, they hope, is the beginning of the end of that obstruction," the lawsuit states.

San Francisco City Attorney's Office spokesperson Jen Kwart told Fox News Digital that once their office is served, they will review the complaint and respond accordingly.

"Mr. Balaji’s death is a tragedy, and our hearts go out to his family," Kwart said.

According to one of the family's attorneys, Kevin Rooney, it has been a challenging time for the family since Balaji's passing.

Balaji's Background and Allegations

Just days before his death, Balaji was "upbeat and happy" during a trip to Catalina Island with his friends for his 26th birthday. The lawsuit describes Balaji as a "child prodigy with a particular interest in and talent for coding." He attended the University of California at Berkeley, and, upon graduating, was hired as an AI researcher at OpenAI.

By August 2024, Balaji had become disillusioned with OpenAI’s business practices and decided to leave to pursue his own projects. In October, he was featured in a New York Times article titled "Former Open AI Researcher Says the Company Broke Copyright Law," with his photo.

Balaji alleged that "OpenAI violates United States copyright law because ChatGPT trains on copyrighted products of business competitors and then can imitate and substitute those products, running the risk of reducing the commercial viability of OpenAI’s competitors to zero," according to the lawsuit.

Legal Actions and Concerns

Balaji's parents alleged that their requests for more information about their son's death were denied unfairly under the California Public Records Act. They further alleged in the lawsuit that investigators did not take their concerns about Balaji's whistleblower status seriously.

Dr. Joseph Cohen, a forensic pathologist hired by Balaji's parents, conducted a private autopsy and noted some discrepancies related to Balaji's death.

Rooney stated the importance of communication with the family and adherence to the law in disclosing information about the investigation.

Fox News Digital reached out to OpenAI for comment on the matter.

Original article source: Big Tech whistleblower's parents sue, sounding alarm over son's unexpected death