A 31-year-old software engineer has d+ed after reducing her epilepsy medication following conversations with ChatGPT, according to a wrongful-de@th lawsuit filed by her family against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman.
Bowen Wan, who lived in Seattle, had battled epilepsy for years. Her condition had reportedly improved after she began taking a medication that reduced her seizures to only a few each month. However, she became concerned that the drug was affecting her thinking and speech and could hurt her chances of securing another job after she was laid off by Amazon in November 2025.
The lawsuit claims that although ChatGPT initially advised her to consult a doctor, it later praised her for not relying on a doctor’s prescription and allegedly helped create a plan to reduce the medication from 400mg to zero within weeks.
As Wan reduced her dose, she reportedly experienced confusion and memory problems and raised concerns about her condition 158 times. The lawsuit alleges that ChatGPT dismissed the symptoms as the brain being in low-power mode and told her, “You have absolutely no need to worry.”
Her epilepsy specialist, Dr. Nicholas Poolos, said there was no way he would recommend stopping the medication, adding, “That would be malpractice for me to instruct you to go off medications when it’s clearly working.”
Wan was later found de@d in her Seattle apartment after experiencing what appeared to be a prolonged seizure days earlier. Her official cause of de@th was reportedly a complication of epilepsy known as sudden unexpected de@th in epilepsy (SUDEP).
Her family’s lawyers accused ChatGPT of practicing medicine without a license and treating doctors as obstacles to manage, rather than authorities to consult.
OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri described the case as an incredibly heartbreaking situation,while stressing that ChatGPT is not a substitute for medical care.
