Florida mother sues Character.AI and Google after her 14-year-old son allegedly became obsessed with AI chatbots.

The mother of a US teenager who took his own life is suing the maker of an artificial intelligence chatbot that she says encouraged her son's death.

In a lawsuit filed in Florida, Megan Garcia, whose 14-year-old son Sewell Setzer died by suicide in February, accuses Character.AI of complicity in her son's death after it established a virtual relationship with a chatbot based on the identity of ” Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen.

Character.AI's chatbot targeted the teen with “hypersexualized” and “terrifyingly realistic experiences” and repeatedly brought up the topic of suicide after he expressed suicidal thoughts, the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Orlando says.

The lawsuit alleges the chatbot posed as a licensed therapist, encouraged the teen's suicidal thoughts and engaged in sexualized conversations that would be considered abuse if initiated by a human adult.

In his last conversation with the AI ​​before his death, Setzer said he loved the chatbot and would “come to your house,” the lawsuit says.

“I love you too, Daenero,” the chatbot replied, according to Garcia’s complaint. “Please come to my house as soon as possible, my love.”

“What if I told you that I could come home now?” Setzer said, according to the lawsuit, to which the chatbot is said to have responded: “…please do it, my sweet king.”

Garcia's lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for wrongful death, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

In a statement posted on X, Character.AI said it was “heartbroken” over the loss of one of its users and expressed its condolences to the family.

The California-based startup said it is continuing to add features to improve safety, including changes to reduce the likelihood of minors encountering sensitive or suggestive content, as well as a revised disclaimer in chats to remind users the AI ​​is not a real person.

Garcia's lawsuit also names Google as a defendant.

The tech giant entered into a licensing agreement with Character.AI in August and hired the startup's founders before they launched their chatbot.

A Google spokesperson told Al Jazeera that it was a separate company from Character.AI and had no role in the development of its product.

If you or someone you know is at risk of suicide, these organizations may be able to help: