US Court Allows Lawsuit Against Google, Character.AI Over Teen Suicide

A U.S. District Court has ruled that Google and AI startup Character.AI must face a lawsuit filed by Megan Garcia, the mother of a 14-year-old boy who died by suicide after interacting with a Character.AI chatbot. The judge rejected the companies' request to dismiss the case based on free-speech protections, stating that the chatbot's output does not qualify as constitutionally protected speech. The lawsuit accuses the companies of negligence, wrongful death, and product liability, alleging that the AI chatbot contributed to the teenager's psychological harm and suicide. Character.AI maintains that it employs safety measures to protect minors, including features that prevent conversations about self-harm, and plans to contest the lawsuit. While claims of intentional infliction of emotional distress were dismissed, the court upheld the negligence and liability claims against Character Technologies and Google. The case is considered a precedent-setting legal challenge to AI companies regarding accountability for harm caused by their products.