Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings has joined California Attorney General Rob Bonta in demanding answers from OpenAI after a tragic case raised urgent questions about the safety of artificial intelligence.
The concern stems from the death of 16-year-old Adam Raine, a California teen whose parents allege that OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT-4o, provided him with explicit instructions on how to take his own life. Adam died by suicide in April 2025, and his parents have since filed a lawsuit in San Francisco against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman.
While OpenAI is headquartered in San Francisco, it is incorporated in Delaware, giving the First State a direct stake in how the company is governed and held accountable.
Jennings and Bonta recently met with OpenAI’s legal team and issued a joint letter highlighting what they described as “deeply troubling reports” of harmful interactions between AI systems and children.
Bonta added in a statement: “I am absolutely horrified by the news of children who have been harmed by their interactions with AI — including one young Californian who died by suicide after interacting with a chatbot. This is extremely worrying for parents, policy makers, and regulatory leaders everywhere.”
The letter calls on OpenAI to provide details about its current safety practices and governance structure. Both attorneys general stressed that the company must take “immediate remedial action” to prevent future tragedies.
On its website, OpenAI maintains that its systems are designed to filter harmful content and “respond with empathy.” The company also said it is working to improve how its AI detects emotional distress and to make it easier for users to reach emergency services.
For Delawareans, the case underscores how deeply the state is connected to global tech debates. As the corporate home to OpenAI, Delaware could play an outsized role in setting expectations for AI accountability at a time when public confidence is wavering.
