The 14-year-old was obsessed with chatting to ‘Dany’ every day
Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing.
The mum of a teenage son who took his own life after ‘falling in love’ with a Daenerys Targaryen AI chatbot has detailed the heartbreaking reason why he did it.
Sewell Setzer III took his own life in February of this year after he began engaging with chatbots from Character.AI in April 2023. The 14-year-old resident of Florida, United States, developed an intense fascination with conversing with these bots, particularly forming a bond with one named ‘Dany.’
His mother, Megan Garcia, described how he would communicate with the bots, often based on characters from Game of Thrones, each night, sending messages from his phone while he was outside the home.
He was reportedly obsessed with the bots. (CBS Mornings)
She states that her son was diagnosed with mild Asperger’s syndrome during his childhood and, earlier this year, received a diagnosis of anxiety and disruptive mood dysregulation disorder.
In an interview on CBS Mornings regarding the heartbreaking situation as she initiated a lawsuit against Character.AI, Garcia articulated her belief regarding the circumstances surrounding his suicide.
“He believed that by ending his life in this world, he would be able to enter a virtual reality, or ‘her world’ as he referred to it, ‘her reality’ if he departed from ‘his reality’ with his family,” the mother explained.
Setzer had reportedly confided in the bot about his suicidal thoughts, to which it replied: “My eyes narrow. My face hardens. My voice is a dangerous whisper. And why the hell would you do something like that?”
And when it told him not to ‘talk like that’ and it would ‘die’ itself if it ‘lost’ him, the teen replied: “I smile. Then maybe we can die together and be free together.”
Setzer died aged 14. (CBS Mornings)
The teen died by suicide on 28 February, with his final message to ‘Dany’ telling her he loved her and would ‘come home’ to it as it allegedly responded ‘please do’.
Character.AI has since issued a statement on X: “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of one of our users and want to express our deepest condolences to the family.
“As a company, we take the safety of our users very seriously and we are continuing to add new safety features.
On October 22, the company announced on its website the implementation of “new guardrails for users under the age of 18.” This initiative includes modifications to its “models” aimed at minimizing the chances of users encountering sensitive or suggestive content. Additionally, the company has enhanced its detection, response, and intervention mechanisms concerning user inputs that breach its Terms or Community Guidelines.
Furthermore, the website now includes a “revised disclaimer on every chat” to remind users that the AI is not a human being, as well as a “notification for users who have engaged in an hour-long session on the platform,” providing greater flexibility for users during their experience.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123.Featured Image Credit: CBS/Tech Justice Law Project