Should AIs be required to report a human user contemplating violence?

Human therapists have a legal duty to warn authorities and potential targets when patients say they plan to harm someone. The same can – in theory – be required of AI chatbots .

By: Anat Lior, Drexel University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: May 26, 2026

Words: 1,077

Last Updated: 2 months ago

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By Anat Lior, Drexel University

On Feb. 10, 2026, an 18-year-old woman, Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed eight people and herself in a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia. OpenAI had previously flagged her ChatGPT conversations as having a disturbing fascination with extreme violence, and suspended her account, but reportedly the company did not notify law enforcement.

On Oct. 2, 2025, a young man named Jonathan Gavalas in Jupiter, Florida, took his own life …

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