‘My son was murdered’: Mother of OpenAI whistleblower shares shocking details

San Francisco: The death of Suchir Balaji, a former researcher at OpenAI, has come under scrutiny after his family disputed the official determination of suicide.

In a post on social media platform X, a woman named Poornima Rao, who claimed to be Balaji's mother, shared disturbing details surrounding the circumstances of his death, claiming that private investigations and a second autopsy did not support the police's suicide ruling.

Balaji, 26, was found dead inside his Buchanan Street apartment in San Francisco, with initial reports from the police and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) attributing his death to suicide. However, according to Rao, the private autopsy did not confirm the cause of death stated by the authorities.

She revealed troubling findings that suggested foul play, including signs of struggle in the bathroom and evidence of blood spots, which indicated that someone may have attacked him in the bathroom.

"We hired private investigator and did second autopsy to throw light on cause of death. Private autopsy doesn’t confirm cause of death stated by police. Suchir’s apartment was ransacked , sign of struggle in the bathroom and looks like some one hit him in bathroom based on blood spots," said Poornima Rao in her post.

Rao described the situation as a "cold-blooded murder," asserting that the authorities’ classification of the case as a suicide is unjust. She went on to demand a more thorough investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) into her son's death, despite what she termed as "lobbying in SF city" preventing proper justice.

Suchir Balaji had previously worked for nearly four years at OpenAI before quitting over ethical concerns regarding the potential harm of AI technology. In October, he had raised alarm about OpenAI's use of generative AI, particularly its approach to copyright laws, which he argued were being violated by the company.

In a post on X, Balaji explained his growing concerns during his time at OpenAI, saying, "I initially didn’t know much about copyright, fair use, etc., but became curious after seeing all the lawsuits against GenAI companies. When I tried to understand the issue better, I eventually came to the conclusion that fair use seems like a pretty implausible defense for a lot of generative AI products."

Balaji’s death has sparked an outpouring of grief from those who knew him, especially in the tech community, where he was known for his advocacy on the ethical implications of AI. OpenAI expressed its condolences, stating, "We are devastated to learn of this incredibly sad news today, and our hearts go out to Suchir’s loved ones during this difficult time."

Balaji’s mother continues to call for justice, urging the FBI to look deeper into what she believes is a cover-up of a murder disguised as a suicide.