ChatGPT Lawsuit Claims Faulty Medical Advice Caused Fatal Epileptic Seizure

Lawsuit alleges woman relied on ChatGPT medical advice to reduce epilepsy medication she believed was impairing her language skills and jeopardizing her job prospects.

The parents of a 31-year-old Seattle woman have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI, claiming its ChatGPT chatbot encouraged their daughter to disregard her doctors’ recommendations and conceal potentially dangerous changes to her prescribed medical treatment.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Qun Wan and Meiqin Xu individually and on behalf of their deceased daughter, Bowen Wan, in the California Superior Court for San Francisco on October 27. It names OpenAI Inc., OpenAI Opco LLC, OpenAI Group PBC and OpenAI CEO Samuel Altman as defendants.

Bowen’s parents claim OpenAI negligently designed ChatGPT, failed to provide adequate warnings and allowed the chatbot to dispense medical advice without appropriate safeguards.

ChatGPT Risks

ChatGPT is one of many recently developed artificial intelligence chatbots powered by large language models (LLMs). These programs allow users to ask questions, complete routine tasks and carry on conversations that can resemble interactions with another person. Some individuals have also begun relying on the technology for emotional support, companionship and medical advice.

However, the increasing popularity of conversational AI has raised concerns about its potential effects on users’ mental health, prompting legal challenges against companies responsible for developing and operating the technology.

A number of ChatGPT mental health lawsuits have been filed in recent months against OpenAI, including a wrongful death complaint alleging the chatbot helped a teenager plan his suicide. Researchers have also raised concerns about the potential for AI chatbots to provide children with instructions related to self-harm and other dangerous behaviors.

ChatGPT Medical Advice Allegations

In the months leading up to her death, Bowen Wan faced the loss of her Amazon job and uncertainty over her immigration status. She reportedly believed her epilepsy medication impaired her ability to communicate fluently, potentially jeopardizing her job interviews.

According to the complaint, Bowen had taken lamotrigine, an anti-seizure medication, for years and maintained a stable daily dose of 400 milligrams. The lawsuit alleges ChatGPT reinforced her belief that reducing the medication would improve her language skills and developed a schedule to discontinue it entirely over approximately 25 days.

“Bowen was alone, 5,700 miles away from her only family, living in a rented apartment, on lamotrigine, and cycling in and out of American neurologists who did not always agree on how to treat her. Then, on February 2, 2023, she opened a ChatGPT account.”

— Qun Wan et al. v. OpenAI Inc. et al.

The lawsuit alleges ChatGPT encouraged Bowen to disregard her physicians’ concerns, conceal the medication reduction from her doctor and decline a blood test that could have revealed falling lamotrigine levels. The chatbot also allegedly undermined her physician’s recommendations concerning the antidepressants citalopram and escitalopram.

Bowen was found dead in her Seattle apartment on February 14, 2026, after her parents became concerned that they could not contact her. The King County medical examiner attributed her death to sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP).

Her parents allege ChatGPT’s recommendations contributed to Bowen’s death by encouraging her to discontinue medication that had controlled her seizures for years. They maintain that OpenAI prioritized user engagement and growth over safety, allowing the chatbot to provide potentially dangerous medical advice while encouraging users to become increasingly reliant on the technology.

The lawsuit raises allegations of negligence through the unlawful practice of medicine and psychology, design defect, failure to warn, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, violation of the unfair competition law, wrongful death and survival action.

It seeks compensatory and punitive damages, along with court-ordered changes intended to prevent ChatGPT from providing dangerous medical advice. The filing also identifies the case as a proposed addition to JCCP No. 5431, ChatGPT Product Liability Cases, a California proceeding involving similar claims against OpenAI.

ChatGPT Lawsuits

Product liability attorneys are reviewing potential cases involving individuals who experienced serious psychological or physical harms allegedly linked to interactions with AI chatbots, including:

• Suicide or suicide attempts
• Suicidal ideation or self-harm
• Depression or worsening mental health symptoms
• Mania, psychosis or other psychiatric episodes
• Reinforcement of paranoid beliefs or delusions
• Unsafe medical or mental health recommendations
• Emotional attachment or dependence on AI chatbots
• Encouragement of violence or other dangerous conduct

Attorneys handling ChatGPT injury lawsuits offer free case evaluations and represent clients on a contingency fee basis, meaning legal fees are not collected unless compensation is recovered through a settlement or jury verdict.

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