The mother of a 14-year-old boy who died by suicide has finalized a settlement with Character.AI, the company she sued over her son\u2019s use of its chatbot. \u2013 An artificial intelligence company has formally settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by a Central Florida mother who claims her 14-year-old son committed suicide after becoming \u201caddicted\u201d to an AI chatbot app.<\/p>\n
Megan Garcia alleged that her son, Sewell Setzer, became developed mental health problems while using Character.AI, an app that allows users to chat online with computer-generated characters.<\/p>\n
Garcia\u2019s lawsuit claimed the chatbot \u201csexually and emotionally abused\u201d her minor son, in part by exposing him to sexually explicit material, and that he discussed suicide with it.<\/p>\n
The parties agreed to settle the wrongful-death lawsuit in January, court records show.<\/p>\n
The settlement was finalized this week, but its terms were not disclosed.<\/p>\n
Setzer died in February 2024 after fatally shooting himself with his stepfather\u2019s pistol, which the lawsuit said was stored in compliance with Florida law.<\/p>\n
Character Technologies, identified in the lawsuit as C.AI, unsuccessfully tried to get the case dismissed last year. <\/p>\n
The company initially denied responsibility for Setzer\u2019s death and argued that the lawsuit sought to impose liability for protected speech. <\/p>\n
Garcia\u2019s attorneys countered that constitutional protections for human expression should not apply to AI-generated responses. <\/p>\n
Google LLC, Alphabet Inc. and Character.AI\u2019s two founders were also named as defendants in the lawsuit. They denied responsibility, according to the 2025 court filing.<\/p>\n