The parents of Suchir Balaji, a 26-year-old former researcher at OpenAI who raised ethical concerns about the organisation, have alleged foul play in his death. Balaji was found dead earlier this month in his San Francisco flat, with authorities attributing the cause to suicide.
However, his parents, Balaji Ramamurthy and Purnima Rao, contest the claim, citing autopsy results that point to signs of a struggle, including a head injury.
“We read the second autopsy. There are signs of struggle such as a head injury. More details reveal it is murder,” stated Rao.
Last conversations
Recounting their final interaction with their son, Ramamurthy said, “He was returning from a birthday trip from Los Angeles with his friends. He was happy and told me he wanted to attend CES in January. At the end, he said he was going for dinner.”
Suchir, a California native, worked at OpenAI for nearly four years before resigning in August, citing concerns about the company’s business practices.
He alleged that OpenAI had violated US copyright law, a claim he shared with The New York Times in an article titled Former OpenAI Researcher Says the Company Broke Copyright Law.
Mother alleges suppression
Rao suggested her son faced threats following his revelations. “Why would he leave OpenAI and the AI industry when he was among the top 10 in artificial intelligence? He was planning to venture into neuroscience and machine learning. Was he threatened by OpenAI?” she queried.
She further claimed her son had sought legal counsel and was assured he was within his rights.
“He figured out they were suppressing him, and that made him speak to The New York Times,” she added.
Balaji was reportedly working on research that demonstrated flaws in AI-generated outputs.
“He explained that the modulated answers weren’t exactly based on the information fed to ChatGPT. He was standing for humanity,” said Rao.
His parents believe the findings Balaji had unearthed could have had a transformative impact on the AI industry.
“We know now it is a powerplay. We have the autopsy report, and he didn’t take his life. Who and why is something we need to explore,” Ramamurthy declared.
Notably, Elon Musk, co-founder of OpenAI, expressed scepticism about the official suicide narrative, posting on X, “This doesn’t seem like suicide.” Rao said,
“It’s a great support for us, though we haven’t reached out to him.”
The family has called for an FBI investigation, asserting, “They must get to the bottom of this and give justice to my son. Suchir was incredibly smart, and his contributions were invaluable.”
The parents have also sought support from Indian authorities in the US, with assurances of assistance. “We expect the Indian government to raise its voice for us,” said Rao.
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