Suchir Balaji, a 26-year-old former OpenAI researcher who raised concerns about the artificial intelligence company’s operations and practices, was found dead in his flat in San Francisco on November 26, reports said on Saturday.
According to reports, San Francisco police were called to Balaji’s apartment after friends and colleagues expressed concern over his well-being. Upon arrival, officers discovered Balaji’s body and his death was confirmed subsequently on November 26. The news of his death has come to light now.
Initial reports suggest no evidence of foul play, with investigators suspecting it could be suicide.
“Officers and medics arrived on scene and located a deceased adult male from what appeared to be a suicide. No evidence of foul play was found during the initial investigation,” the San Francisco Chronicle quoted a police statement.
“The manner of death has been determined to be suicide,” the director of the office of the city’s chief medical examiner told the media.
Balaji had publicly accused OpenAI of using copyrighted material without proper authorisation to train its generative AI program, ChatGPT. He had alleged that technologies like ChatGPT were damaging the internet.
His allegations have been central to several lawsuits filed against OpenAI by authors, programmers, and journalists, who claim their copyrighted works were used illegally, significantly enhancing the AI capabilities of the company.