Suchir Balaji, who warned of the dangers of generative AI, found dead in his apartment

C’is a sudden death that caused a stir in Silicon Valley. On November 26, 2024, Suchir Balaji, who was a long-time researcher at OpenAI, was found dead in an apartment in San Francisco, American media revealed on December 13. Police ruled it a suicide after responding to a welfare check. At just 26 years old, Balaji was at the center of a growing controversy over OpenAI’s data collection practices, fueled by a major court case involving the New York Times.

The San Francisco police indicated that no signs of malice were noted during the initial investigation: “There is no evidence to suggest a cause other than suicide,” confirmed the SFPD. The San Francisco Medical Examiner’s Office has corroborated…